Last month, Lithonia cop Mario Streeter’s certification for policing in Georgia was suspended.
The six-month-long sidelining by the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council resulted from a 2015 incident in which he was accused of holding a gun to his girlfriend’s head. But Lithonia police Chief Roosevelt Smith said Streeter, 33, kept working and didn’t reveal the suspension.
POST also should’ve notified the department. Ryan Powell, operations director at POST, acknowledged the oversight and said the agency is reviewing the situation to ensure it doesn’t happen again.
Streeter’s superiors found out about the suspension on Monday during a routine review, the chief said. They fired and arrested Streeter on Wednesday on a charge of violating the oath of office.
“In 30 years, this is the first time I’ve had to execute an arrest warrant on an officer of mine,” Smith told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “It’s not a good feeling.”
Smith said his agency hired Streeter in September 2016. He had been fired from the DeKalb County Police Department in 2015 after his arrest on a battery charge.
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The charge, which was upgraded to aggravated assault, had been dropped before Lithonia hired him, court records show, though the reason wasn’t immediately clear Thursday.
According to POST documents, Streeter’s girlfriend told police he put a gun to her head after coming home drunk. Streeter and the girlfriend said the girlfriend had been holding a knife when he went to get his service weapon.
Streeter admitted holding the gun to her head before leaving the apartment, POST records say.
POST initially revoked Streeter’s certification, but he appealed and came to an agreement for the six-month suspension in April, Smith said.
The chief said the department is working to ensure that none of the cases Streeter worked while suspended are in jeopardy.
Streeter was released on $10,000 bond Thursday. Reached by phone, he declined to comment.
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