Prosecuting attorney criticized for 'racial undertone' of Facebook comment
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More than 35 lawyers have signed an open letter criticizing a prosecuting attorney in Mississippi for a Facebook comment saying she hoped deadly COVID-19 spreads during riots.
The letter says Madison County, Mississippi, Prosecutor Pamela Hancock damaged her professional credibility in the post. The Mississippi Clarion Ledger has coverage.
“Your comments evinced a racial undertone and potential bias which we find unacceptable, especially in a public official,” the letter says. “There must be no hint that you, as a prosecutor, carry any racial animus or bias in your work, and that is why your social media post was so damaging to your professional credibility and to our criminal justice system.”
The Clarion Ledger initially covered the controversy in June. Hancock had commented in reply to a Facebook post by a lawyer in her law firm. The lawyer asked: “Does COVID spread during massive street riots or just in bars and restaurants? Asking for a friend?”
Hancock’s now deleted reply said, “We can only hope the deadly strain spreads in riots.”
Hancock earns $120,000 as the prosecuting attorney and also owns the Hancock and Associates Law Firm.
She told Mississippi Today that she was joking in the Facebook comment, and she doesn’t want anyone to die. “If you ask anybody that knows me, I don’t hold any ill will towards anyone or any group,” Hancock said. “I only try to be fair.”
