The mayor of Austin, Texas, has apologized after he seemed to be caught dozing off during a police officer’s funeral earlier this week.
Steve Adler was attending Monday’s funeral service for Austin Police Officer Anthony Martin when an attendee snapped a picture of the mayor with his head slumped down and his eyes closed.
Other photos provided to KXAN-TV, the local NBC affiliate, appear to show Mr. Adler with his head up and his eyes closed while the service was still ongoing.
Officer Martin was killed in a motorcycle crash on Sept. 23 when returning home at the end of his night shift.
If you’re going to defund and destroy a police department as their mayor then attend a highly respected officer’s funeral, perhaps do not continue to disrespect that officer’s family, friends, and other officers by falling asleep. pic.twitter.com/YDZglVzyIM
— Justin Berry (@realJustinBerry) October 3, 2022
“I want to express my deepest apologies to the family of Officer Martin,” Mr. Adler said in a written statement to the Austin American-Statesman, without addressing the sleeping allegations directly.
“Officer Martin died 10 days ago and will forever be honored as a hero. This moment should be about him and his family, including his two daughters whose words today pierced my heart as a father. I hold Officer Martin in the highest regard. May his memory be a blessing to his family, and to the city he served,” the mayor said.
The photo was originally published by Justin Berry, an Austin police officer and a member of the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement.
Mr. Berry is also one of 19 officers indicted for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for his actions during the city’s 2020 protests in the wake of George Floyd’s killing, according to the Daily Mail.
Officer Martin’s wife, Amberlee, issued a lengthy statement through the Austin Police Association as well.
“I have been trying to be the strong woman Tony would want me to be. But this Mayor Adler, was crushing. … I am crushed,” Ms. Martin said, who later ended her statement with “I know he doesn’t mean anything to you but could you at least have pretended for one hour.”
Mr. Adler and the city’s police department have been at odds since Austin experienced its wave of protests in 2020.
The mayor helped cut $21 million from the city police’s budget in 2020, according to the Daily Mail. The funding was eventually restored but has led to low morale and more than 200 officer vacancies in the Austin police force.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.