A random audit of a deputy's body camera caused the Albany Police Department some embarrassment, and now the officer who made the embarrassing comments will be terminated.

Back in November of 2020 an audit of the body camera footage of an officer with the Albany County Sheriff’s Department caught Albany Police Officer David Haupt making some disparaging comments about the Black people that he was sworn to protect and serve.

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Officer Haupt was involved in a conversation with a member of the Albany County Sheriff’s Department when the deputy inadvertently recorded the conversation. At that time Officer Haupt had been a member of the Albany Police Department for four years. He was suspended back in November and now he is heading towards termination.

According to Times Union, Officer David Haupt used profanity saying that Black people were the worst (**!#) race. He joked that his friends who listened to police scanners asked him if he ever encountered any white male suspects. He said he responds to them that he does not and acknowledged that he believes that the black race is the worst race.

Albany Police Chief Eric Hawkins, who is a Black man, immediately suspended Officer Haupt and sent him to training on racial diversity and workplace violence.

Chief Hawkins is now taking steps towards terminating Haupt for his racist comments. In addition, the department is reviewing his personnel files to see if there were any additional complaints against him that could be racially motivated.

I’m glad that Haupt is being terminated, I only wish that the other officer involved in the incident would have come forward himself or at least checked Haupt when he made the racist statements. The soon-to-be-terminated officer felt comfortable in making inappropriate comments to his coworker.

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