‘BAD DECISION’

Philadelphia’s Top Cop Apologizes for Wearing T-Shirt That Appeared to Make Light of Rodney King’s Beating

A photo resurfaced showing Acting Commissioner Christine Coulter wearing a shirt that read: “L.A.P.D. We Treat You Like a King.”

Philadelphia’s acting police commissioner has apologized for a controversial T-shirt she wore in the 1990s that appeared to make light of the notorious police beating of Rodney King. The old photo, first reported on by The Philadelphia Inquirer, shows Christine Coulter wearing a shirt that read: “L.A.P.D. We Treat You Like a King.” The slogan has been interpreted as a joke about King’s beating at the hands of four Los Angeles cops in 1991; the acquittal of the officers involved sparked riots. On Tuesday, Coulter, who is white, said she didn’t believe at the time that the shirt referenced the King incident, but still apologized for wearing it. “It is clear that it was a bad decision on my part and I would not wear that shirt today,” she said. “Certainly, as I look at the past week and the hurt and damage it has caused people who I care about to communities that I always care about, I should have known.”