TORRANCE, Calif. — California Attorney General Rob Bonta and the City of Torrance are working with the Torrance Police Department to address bigoted text messages exchanged between officers and implement reforms to “advance public safety,” according to the Attorney General’s website.
The agreement follows a request from the Torrance chief of police after discovering racist messages exchanged among officers. Bonta launched an independent review in response to the racist texts and broader concerns about excessive force.
The offensive messages, exchanged by more than a dozen officers, were uncovered during a 2021 investigation. Two former Torrance officers had previously been charged with felony vandalism for spray-painting a swastika on an impounded car. That investigation revealed “racist, homophobic, and antisemitic messages,” according to the Attorney General’s office…