Barry Brodd
Barry Brodd, a former police officer who testified as an expert use-of-force witness in the murder trial of fired Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, was apparently targeted for vandalism early Saturday, but the suspects got the wrong house, say cops in Santa Rosa, California.
Authorities say he no longer lives there, and has not for years. He does not even live in California anymore. Instead, another resident found their home smeared with what seemed to be animal blood. There was a pig’s head near the front porch.
Officers think Brodd was the target based on his recent testimony in support of Chauvin’s defense in the death of George Floyd. He said Tuesday that he found the defendant followed training, and was objectively reasonable.
Santa Rosa Police Chief Rainer Navarro distanced his department from this take, saying Brodd had not worked for them since 2004.
“His comments do not reflect the values and beliefs of the Santa Rosa Police Department,” he wrote in a statement that same day.
The state says the defendant killed Floyd by kneeling on the victim’s neck while the man was prone and handcuffed. The defense says the victim died from health and drug issues. Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo testified that Chauvin’s actions violated policy, however. Lt. Richard Zimmerman, a veteran homicide detective for the department, said the kneeling constituted deadly force. Expert witnesses for the state downplayed the possible role of Floyd’s prior health, and emphasized the police restraint.
As for the vandalism incident, cops say the suspects did not stop at the residence. They soon splattered a large hand statue in front of the Santa Rosa Plaza mall with what is suspected of being animal blood, officers said. They left a sign there featuring the picture of a pig, and the words, “Oink oink.”
The investigation is ongoing. The suspects were described as wearing all black. Police said that anyone with information reach the tip line at www.srcity.org/CrimeTips.
[Screengrab via Law&Crime Network]