In 1996, Mark Fuhrman — one of the investigating LAPD officers responding to the scene after the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson — was charged with perjury for false testimony delivered during the trial of O.J. Simpson. Decades later, California has barred him from ever carrying a badge in the state again, though at 72, the move is being viewed as ceremonial and "was likely meant to make clear that California will not tolerate such officers," as AP News describes it.
Having been exposed for racial-bias and accused by Simpson's defense team of planting evidence at the scene of the crime, Fuhrman retired from the LAPD and went on to write a book called “Murder in Brentwood" and, as The Los Angeles Times points out, Fox News’ website lists him as “a forensic and crime scene expert for Fox News Channel. In response to the news of his decertification, he gave brief quotes to both The San Francisco Chronicle and AP News, saying, “Good for them, have a nice day,” and, “That was 30 years ago. You guys are really up to speed.”
The California decertification law that stripped Fuhrman of his policing capabilities was put into practice in response to the 2020 police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Per AP News' reporting, roughly 100 officers have been decertified since 2023.
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