After claiming that racism played a part in being arrested at a traffic stop, New England Patriots defensive lineman Christian Barmore has publicly apologized for making that statement and accepted “full accountability” for his actions leading to his arrest.
Barmore was issued a summons on Oct. 16 for operating an unregistered vehicle, display of plates penalties, and driving with an expired license. After being released, he took to X (formerly known as Twitter) and wrote, “I just experienced for the first time– five Providence cops being very unprofessional racism at its finest.” He later deleted the post.
On Oct. 19, he went back to the social media platform to admit that his previous statement was untrue and apologized to the police officers involved as well as his Patriots teammates and family.
He stated that after reflecting on his actions, he had to take full accountability for what transpired. He cited that he should have known better as his mother is a former police officer and he understood the pressures of being in that profession. He stated he met with the officers from the Providence Police Department to express his sentiments in person.
A few days have gone by since the incident with the Providence police and I have had a chance to deeply reflect on my behavior. I want everyone to know that I’m sorry and I take full accountability for my actions. I apologize to the Providence Police Department, my teammates,…
— Christian Barmore (@chris_barmore) October 19, 2024
The incident took place on Oct. 16 before 1 A.M. A police report stated that the football player‘s windows on his Jeep Grand Cherokee were tinted. He had a plate cover on the temporary registrations, which caused them issues while reading the information. A police officer stated he tried to pull the defensive lineman over, but claimed that Barmore “slow rolled” police, according to The Boston Globe.
After being stopped, Barmore “had an attitude towards police” and handed them his paperwork “in an aggressive manner.” They searched his vehicle and claimed to have found an ash cup with what they claimed to be a blunt and an unknown substance. They included that they found several tubes filled with marijuana.
The officers stated that Barmore’s Jeep registration had expired, leading to his arrest.