Atlanta Police recruits fired during cheating scandal speak exclusively to CBS46 Investigative Reporter Mike Mason. Ten of these recruits, who do not want to be identified, told us they did nothing wrong and feel they were the ones who were cheated out of a career.
Under the shadow of Atlanta’s skyline, 10 of the recruits recently fired reflected on how they got here. One fired recruit told us, “It was a ton of work. It was regular workouts, we were tazed, we were pepper sprayed.”
Another said, “We came with blood, sweat and tears. We worked.” When the recruits woke up Thursday, they found themselves without a job. Fired by the Atlanta Police Department, their dreams of becoming sworn officers were shattered. “It didn’t seem fair and it didn’t seem accurate,” one recruit contends. “We’re honest, good people.”
Earlier this week, 45 recruits were set to be sworn in. Atlanta police said 20 were denied badges pending an investigation. On Wednesday a dozen were dismissed. Now 10 of those fired recruits are speaking out, telling CBS46 they’re not cheaters.
One of the recruits said, “Everyone we’ve talked to at the department says this is silly and they can’t believe what’s happening to us. I wish that the command staff felt the same way.”
Investigators determined at least 12 recruits were not truthful during training.
Recruits said that in itself isn’t true. “These are good people, they’re not cheaters. We would make good officers that the city would be proud of. I know this because we’re honest, good people.”
The recruits said the investigation was based on a bio they were assigned to write a few days before training began. One recruit said, “Others that we talked to did the assignment the same exact way that we did. The only difference is that we came forward when they asked if we emailed or texted and they didn’t.” The recruits claim they were never instructed n
ot to email or text and they never meant to bend the rules.
One recruit exceeded in his class. “We’re among the top in academics, we’re among the top in the shooting range, we are as qualified if not more qualified than the people who swore in.” When CBS46 Investigative Reporter Mike Mason asked the group how many of them felt emailing and texting was considered okay, each of them raised their hands.
Atlanta police officials haven’t told us if the cheating investigation is complete, leaving former recruits questioning both their futures and the merits of the investigation. One recruit told us, “We worked hard for what we should’ve been awarded.”
When asked how many of the fired recruits felt the investigation was not done properly, each of them again raised their hands. All but one told us they would still like to become sworn officers. Officials at the Atlanta Police Department said they won’t comment on this case Thursday and they can’t confirm whether the internal affairs investigation is near completion.
Copyright 2015 WGCL-TV (Meredith Corporation). All rights reserved.
Investigative Reporter Mike Mason 