Klan memorabilia found in the home of Muskegen MI cop. What would you do?

[HomerJS]

Robert and Reyna Mathis were touring a house for sale owned by a Michigan police officer. Mathis found confederate flags on the walls but was taken aback when they found a Klan application hanging on the wall. The couple had enough and left the house. He posted what he found on Facebook.

What would you have done as the potential buyer?
What should the Police Department do?

IMO anyone who seemingly has that kind of reverence for the Klan should not have a job with law enforcement authority. While everyone has the right to do this in their own home you do not have the right to be a cop. I probably would have gone to the Police Department first to give them a chance at explaining to the public.

Police Department did the right thing in suspending the officer until it can be investigated. If nothing found in his record indicating bias against minorities and the cop can provide a suitable explanation to the public he should be reinstated.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/10/us/michigan-officer-placed-on-leave-kkk-document-house/index.html

 

[herm0016]

if he or she did not do anything racist as a Police officer, then they should be reinstated. check them out, but nobody deserves to have their career ended because of something like this, if their actions are not above board, then end away on the other hand. same goes for a teacher that was a stripper for example.

I hate that once you are labeled as something on the internet, even if absolutely false, it becomes your identity and effects your entire life. all kinds of people collect weird things, could just be a very odd collection and not a reflection on his personality.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

if he or she did not do anything racist as a Police officer, then they should be reinstated. check them out, but nobody deserves to have their career ended because of something like this, if their actions are not above board, then end away on the other hand. same goes for a teacher that was a stripper for example.

I hate that once you are labeled as something on the internet, even if absolutely false, it becomes your identity and effects your entire life. all kinds of people collect weird things, could just be a very odd collection and not a reflection on his personality.

It could be, but how many people on this board have used the term 'gun nut' or 'ammosexual' for people who collect guns the same way?

 

[herm0016]

It could be, but how many people on this board have used the term 'gun nut' or 'ammosexual' for people who collect guns the same way?

explain? lots of people label people for things that they really are not. that's my point. what are you trying to get across?

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

explain? lots of people label people for things that they really are not. that's my point. what are you trying to get across?

I agree with you in principal, just pointing out that if anyone has a reflex to get further information before accusing this person, they should take the same standard when it comes to collecting other things (guns came to mind immediately). Wasn't directing anything at you specifically.

 

[IronWing]

Growing up, I knew several people who collected Nazi memorabilia. Not one of them was a Nazi. The potential buyers should go on with their lives.

 

[HomerJS]

Growing up, I knew several people who collected Nazi memorabilia. Not one of them was a Nazi. The potential buyers should go on with their lives.

If the homeowner were a plumber I would agree with you.

 

[fskimospy]

Odd that the article didn't mention that the officer was involved in a fatal shooting of a black motorist in 2009.

https://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon...rmine-if-fatal-shooting-will-be-reviewed.html

Not that this has to mean the 2009 shooting was improper but it certainly might merit a second look.

 

[IronWing]

If the homeowner were a plumber I would agree with you.

We don't know anything about the guy other than that he is a cop.

 

[brycejones]

I would blame the liberals for planting it.

 

[herm0016]

Odd that the article didn't mention that the officer was involved in a fatal shooting of a black motorist in 2009.

https://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon...rmine-if-fatal-shooting-will-be-reviewed.html

Not that this has to mean the 2009 shooting was improper but it certainly might merit a second look.

sounds like he got beat up bad enough that he had broken bones in his face and tried pepper spray and his baton first, having those things turned against him in the struggle.

 

[Brainonska511]

Growing up, I knew several people who collected Nazi memorabilia. Not one of them was a Nazi. The potential buyers should go on with their lives.

What people hang in their house often says something about what they value. Don't be surprised if you get mistaken for a racist when you have such stuff prominently displayed on your walls.

 

[Paratus]

if he or she did not do anything racist as a Police officer, then they should be reinstated. check them out, but nobody deserves to have their career ended because of something like this, if their actions are not above board, then end away on the other hand. same goes for a teacher that was a stripper for example.

I hate that once you are labeled as something on the internet, even if absolutely false, it becomes your identity and effects your entire life. all kinds of people collect weird things, could just be a very odd collection and not a reflection on his personality.

Any competent real estate agent would have told them to take down controversial decorations like the framed KKK application in the bedroom and the confederate flags in the garage and the dinning room as many would find it distasteful and result in fewer and lower offers.

Yet they remained up.

Flag is next to the white cabinet

Allegedly that is a confederate flag placemat on the dinning room table


Seems the homeowner/police man was happy to leave them up in very visible parts of his home

 

[herm0016]

In my experience, most RE agents would never even notice those things.

 

[zinfamous]

I agree with Ironwing. My first thought is that it could very well be someone that likes collecting freaky dark shit, because that happens. I would say that with them displayed individually, around the house (opposed to in a room or display case, designated for all of it)...it seems like less of a collection, but an actual design decision...so maybe that pushes me towards "dude really loves racism and possibly lynching."

 

[Fanatical Meat]

In my experience, most RE agents would never even notice those things.

Agreed & I’m a realtor.
I see far too many houses with far too many “things” in them to be interested in pictures or plaques or badges or flags or books or magazines or flatware or lights
Basically anything that can be moved I’m not interested in

 

[nakedfrog]

Yeah, seeing it on the wall makes the application seem out of place in a couple ways.

 

[96Firebird]

I hate this guy so much.

The bed placement in that room is awful, actually most of the layout is a travesty.

 

[Paratus]

In my experience, most RE agents would never even notice those things.

Agreed & I’m a realtor.
I see far too many houses with far too many “things” in them to be interested in pictures or plaques or badges or flags or books or magazines or flatware or lights
Basically anything that can be moved I’m not interested in

Anecdotally my wife’s family many years ago was asked by the realtor to take down a picture of a wizard in their game room because it might bother the Christians in the area who would be looking at the house.

When we moved 14 years ago the realtor wanted the house mostly neutral with a lot of our stuff put out of sight to make it easier for people to picture themselves in it.

Same thing with our neighbor down the street, a lot of their personal effects were moved to the garage while their house was on the market.

In my experience the realtors have wanted things preferably neutral and uncluttered. Of course your experience or how you run your business maybe different from my experience.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

Anecdotally my wife’s family many years ago was asked by the realtor to take down a picture of a wizard in their game room because it might bother the Christians in the area who would be looking at the house.

When we moved 14 years ago the realtor wanted the house mostly neutral with a lot of our stuff put out of sight to make it easier for people to picture themselves in it.

Same thing with our neighbor down the street, a lot of their personal effects were moved to the garage while their house was on the market.

In my experience the realtors have wanted things preferably neutral and uncluttered. Of course your experience or how you run your business maybe different from my experience.

Absolutely when selling all personal stuff should be packed away. You want to person entering the house to envision it being theirs.
Neutral colors is just something people like me tell sellers when asked because they want to hear an answer and that is what is expected. Honestly colors don’t matter provided they aren’t stupid colors.
Same with kitchen/bath remodels. When people ask I say do you want me to tell you what you want to hear or do you wants facts?
What they want to hear is do it you’ll recoup the cost
Facts say best case scenario is they’ll recoup 80% of the cost assuming the kitchen or bath was functional to begin with

 

[Paratus]

Reminds me of a time back in college when our marching band was playing at an away game. We played at a local marching band festival in the Midwest the night before the game and then were put up by the local band parents.

Within about 20 minutes of being with our host family their early teen son couldn’t wait to show us how they had their basement game room decked out in a collection of confederate and nazi flags.

Needless to say this was concerning to my friend and I, especially since I have Jewish ancestry but hey what were we going to do. We were in someone else’s house at night with no easy way to contact the band (everyone didn’t have a cell phone in those days).

So we spent the night with people who were outwardly pleasant but proud of their racist trappings and assumed other white kids would be as well.

 

[Maxima1]

Odd that the article didn't mention that the officer was involved in a fatal shooting of a black motorist in 2009.

https://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon...rmine-if-fatal-shooting-will-be-reviewed.html

Not that this has to mean the 2009 shooting was improper but it certainly might merit a second look.

From your own article:

Anderson was cleared of wrongdoing in the 2009 shooting of an unarmed black man, who, an investigation found, used Anderson’s police radio and another object to severely beat Anderson.

 

[cytg111]

Would you hire a guy as police officer if he had a swastika tattoo on his forehead? None of his actions are biased .. its just ... he has a swastika on his face.
Deal or no deal?

Bottom line, if you identify as a Nazi or a KKK character, you are in my book not of good mental health.
We cant have mentally ill people police other people with guns. But maybe thats just me.

 

[Paratus]

Absolutely when selling all personal stuff should be packed away. You want to person entering the house to envision it being theirs.
Neutral colors is just something people like me tell sellers when asked because they want to hear an answer and that is what is expected. Honestly colors don’t matter provided they aren’t stupid colors.
Same with kitchen/bath remodels. When people ask I say do you want me to tell you what you want to hear or do you wants facts?
What they want to hear is do it you’ll recoup the cost
Facts say best case scenario is they’ll recoup 80% of the cost assuming the kitchen or bath was functional to begin with

Yup.
We had remodeled the bathrooms and kitchen before selling our previous home. We recouped our money but the thing is we would have sold it at about the same price even if we hadn’t done it.

We actually just started remodeling our current house. There was some things we really liked about our house and several we didn’t. When we looked at moving we realized we’d still have to fix the things we didn’t like in the new house so why not just fix what we could on our current home for less money.

 

[trenchfoot]

I'm safely assuming that the LEO in question had to have gone through some kind of pre-hire security clearance investigation. I'm going to go out on a short limb and also assume that as part of that vetting process a question was asked whether written or orally, if the prospect was affiliated with any kind of organization that promoted acts of violence, etc. and naming specific organizations such as the KKK, White Supremacy groups and the like that would automatically disqualify the prospect from being hired.

Whether there was any follow-up in this regard to assure that the prospect's answers were forthright and accurate is where things need to be investigated further by an impartial investigation panel.

Stick to the facts and let the chips fall where they may.