© Provided by Washington Examiner A law enforcement spokesman was removed from the deadly Atlanta-area spa shootings case following his controversial remarks during a news conference and recently on social media.
The Cherokee County Sheriff's Office told WSB-TV on Thursday spokesman Capt. Jay Baker would no longer handle matters involving the shootings after receiving some complaints about his rhetoric surrounding the shooter's motives.
On Tuesday, four people were shot and killed and one other was injured when a gunman opened fire at Young's Asian Massage Parlor in Acworth at around 5 p.m. Two other massage parlors in Atlanta were later targeted, and four more people were killed in those shootings.
The suspect in those shootings, 21-year-old Robert Aaron Long, was arrested and charged with four counts of murder and one count of aggravated assault and has no bond, according to the Atlanta Police Department.
HERE'S WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT THE ATLANTA SPA SHOOTINGS
Seven of the victims were women, and one man was killed. Six of the victims were of Asian descent. Police say they have not ruled out the possibility of a hate crime.
Baker faced online criticism following a Wednesday press conference during which he said the shooter had a "bad day."
"He was pretty much fed up and kind of end of his rope, and yesterday was a really bad day for him, and this is what he did," Baker said.
The spokesman also said Long "did take responsibility for the shooting" and the alleged perpetrator claimed to be a "sex addict." He added Long called these parlors a "temptation" that he wanted to "eliminate."
Baker also came under fire for a social media post he made in March and April last year on a now-deleted account. And the spokesman reportedly wrote in a Facebook comment that he loved a T-shirt that said, "COVID-19: Imported virus from Chy-Na."
The sheriff's department issued a statement saying it believes Baker did not intend to show disrespect for the victims, despite the decision to remove him from the case.
Sheriff Frank Reynolds said Baker used a "poor choice of words" and called the social media comments "unfortunate."
Reynolds added the department is evaluating Baker's current position as chief communicator.
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"That's where we have to look at Jay's future at the sheriff's office and what it looks like," Reynolds said. "We haven't made that determination yet."
The Washington Examiner reached out to the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office but did not immediately receive a response.
Tags: News, Atlanta, Georgia, shooting, Law Enforcement, Gun Violence
Original Author: Kaelan Deese
Original Location: Police spokesman removed from Atlanta spa shooting case