Not So Fast: St. Louis Police Department Says Rams Apologized, Rams Say That Is A Lie

In today’s “You Tried It” news, the St. Louis Police Officers Association announced that the St. Louis Rams have issued an apology for the actions of some of their players this weekend. You may recall 5 St. Louis Rams players showed support of Mike Brown Sunday during their game against Oakland by raising their hands symbolizing “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot.” The SLPOA immediately asked for an apology and according to them they got it. The Rams however tell a different story.

Here’s what happened. Rams COO Kevin Demoff contacted police Chief Belmar and according to Belmar the conversation was pleasant. It’s noted that Kevin Demoff said, “I expressed to both of them that I felt badly that our players’ support of the community was taken as disrespectful to law enforcement.” He further stated “I regretted any offense the officer’s may have taken.” The Chief sent an email to his police staff using the word “apologized”. Below is the letter:

Members of the Department,

I received a very nice call this morning from Mr. Kevin Demoff of the St. Louis Rams who wanted to take the opportunity to apologize to our department on behalf of the Rams for the “Hands Up” gesture that some players took the field with yesterday.

Mr. Demoff clearly regretted that any members of the Ram’s [sic] organization would act in a way that minimized the outstanding work that police officers and departments carry out each and every day. My impression of the call was that it was heartfelt and I assured him that I would share it with my staff.

Thank you for your hard work, … one night to go. Stay safe.

Belmar

Now here’s the thing, saying “I’m sorry you felt disrespected by us supporting the community” is NOT an apology. Maybe the police chief was so pressed for an apology that all he heard was “Sorry” but I’ve always felt like the phrase “I’m sorry you feel that way” never passed for a simple “I’m sorry.” Needless to say, after word got out that the St. Louis PD was bragging about this “apology” the Rams had to make it very clear, “You tried it!”

St. Louis Rams spokesperson Artis Twyman tells CNN simply, “We did not apologize.” Kevin Demoff shared the same sentiments. “In those conversations, I expressed regret that players’ actions were construed negatively against law enforcement,” Demoff says. “At no time in any of the conversations did I apologize for the actions of our players,” Demoff added. “[The Rams] do believe it is possible to support both our players’ First Amendment rights and the efforts of local law enforcement to make this a better community.”

So what does St. Louis PD do after being embarrassed by the Rams? They throw shade on Twitter of course. How petty!

Save your definitions St. Louis PD, you’ll need it for when you apologize to the Brown family. It’s funny, if they can lie about the Rams apologizing, imagine what other things they’ve lied about.

If all that wasn’t enough to tick off the St. Louis PD, the players won’t be fined either. “As far as the choice that the players made, no, they were exercising their right to free speech,” Rams coach Jeff Fisher said Monday. “They will not be disciplined by the club nor will they be disciplined by the National Football League as it was released today.”

The SLPOA had some really nasty things to say about the events in Ferguson, referring to protesters as “thugs” and more. You can read it all HERE. Stay classy St. Louis PD.