A group of Evanston activists say they believe a member of the Evanston Police Department made disparaging comments on an Instagram post of the local DefundEPD group, an action they say highlights the need for a stronger social media policy.

The officer’s alleged comments on the July 6 post drew comparisons between Evanston and the recent unrest in Minneapolis and shared a link deriding the Black Lives Matter movement. The activists say they believe the incident highlights the need for the city to develop a formal social media policy that addresses behavior on employees’ personal accounts.

The group says the need for a more definitive policy was also highlighted by an incident earlier this year when Chief Demitrous Cook posted on his Snapchat account about 30 mug shots from arrests that happened years ago and one man’s alleged HIV status. At the time, Cook said the post was an accident, and was a result of using the camera feature on Snapchat as opposed to others available on his phone.

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