Albuquerque police chief says an officer using foul language and calling a suspect he later fatally shot a "lunatic" on a recording is "completely unacceptable."
Chief Gorden Eden told The Associated Press on Tuesday that officer Keith Sandy violated department policy when he used an expletive to describe a 38-year-old man struggling with mental illness.
Authorities say Sandy was one of two officers who shot James Boyd following an hours-long standoff in the Sandia foothills in March. That shooting later sparked a violent protest in Albuquerque and an FBI investigation.
In a recording released Monday, Sandy is heard telling a New Mexico State Police sergeant that Boyd was a lunatic who he planned to shoot.
The sergeant later said Sandy was referring to using a stun gun.
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