LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) — A Lafayette police officer, Bart Allen Ryder, was arrested last month in Texas for assault causing bodily injury to a family member, raising concerns about his continued employment with the Lafayette Police Department.
A spokesperson with the police department confirmed that Ryder remains on duty with the department despite the arrest, which has prompted an internal affairs investigation. The incident has sparked community concern about the standards to which police officers are held, especially in cases involving domestic violence.
“I think people who commit domestic violence against a female, a male, whatever, they’re cowards. They don’t belong protecting our citizens. They are the ones who are supposed to be the standard above,” said Marja Broussard, NAACP Louisiana District Vice President for region 4 of Louisiana. “What’s most concerning to me and everyone who is contacting me about it is how can he protect us when you can’t protect someone he loves? We’re strangers to him.”…