Police union slams Browns player for anti
On a day when so much of the scrutiny focused on the debut of Johnny Football, Cleveland Browns receiver Andrew Hawkins made a much more powerful statement without scoring a touchdown or saying a word.
Hawkins slipped on a black T-shirt over his Browns jersey and pads on Sunday during pre-game warm-ups that read: 'Justice for Tamir Rice and John Crawford.'
It was a silent protest of recent deadly Ohio police shootings that drew an immediate and scathing response from Cleveland Police Patrolmen's Association, Cleveland.com reported.
'It's pretty pathetic when athletes think they know the law,' Patrolmen's Association President Jeffrey Follmer said in a statement. 'They should stick to what they know best on the field. The Cleveland Police protect and serve the Browns stadium and the Browns organization owes us an apology.'
The Browns have yet to respond to Follmer's demand.
Tamir Rice, a 12-year-old boy playing a pellet gun, was shot by a Cleveland police officer at a park Nov. 22 and died the next day. Police responded aggressively to the scene after a 911 call warning of someone pointing a pistol, scaring everyone, but that it was 'probably fake.'
Officer Timothy Loehmann told Rice to put his hands up, but he reached for the airsoft gun in his waistband instead, police allege.
John Crawford III, 22, a BB gun in hand, was shot dead by cops at a Beavercreek Walmart just outside of Dayton, Ohio on Aug. 5.
This isn't the first instance of a Browns player taking a stand against police violence.
Hawkins gave teammate Johnson Bademosi a shout out on Twitter after the defensive end wore an 'I can't breathe' T-shirt last week and then penned an editorial on his decision on the Sports Illustrated blog MMQB.
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