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Prescott police officer to resign after re-enacting George Floyd’s killing in Minnesota classroom
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Prescott police officer to resign after re-enacting George Floyd’s killing in Minnesota classroom

The Wisconsin police officer who was banned from substitute teaching in Minnesota after reenacting the police killing of George Floyd in his classroom is no longer with the department.

The Prescott City Council unanimously approved a separation agreement with Steven D. Williams earlier this week. The agreement states that Friday will be Williams’ last day before he resigns “in lieu of termination.”

last month, The South Washington school district said it banned Williams after he “repeatedly made racially hurtful comments,” “told sexist jokes” and “stated that police brutality is not real” while substitute teaching at Woodbury High School, according to a letter from officials the school.

RELATED: Substitute teacher who allegedly recreated George Floyd’s murder at Woodbury HS ‘no longer employed’

Teachers on Call, a private company that hires substitutes for Minnesota school districts, fired Williams after the incident. The company said it passed all background screens, adding that it has a “zero tolerance policy for any form of violent, aggressive or harmful behavior.”

Williams, who did not return multiple voice messages from 5 INVESTIGATE seeking comment, joined the Prescott police force in July 2022 after more than eight years in Montana law enforcement roles.

He was on administrative leave from the department from October 16.

Personnel records show Williams received a documented verbal warning after violating Prescott Police Department policy by missing a mandatory team meeting in May. The police chief noted in a letter that Williams said he “forgot to show up” and it was not the first time he had missed an appointment.

Records also show the police officer damaged his vehicle twice while on duty: On December 24, 2022, Williams rear-ended a tree in a shared parking lot, and then on August 5, 2023, he ripped the radio antenna from the roof of his vehicle. while backing into a garage door.

A racial complaint against Williams was dismissed by the police chief as “baseless” and “without merit” earlier this year, according to a letter in his personnel file. Body-worn camera footage shows the complainant continued to yell at Williams, but he never responded and got back in his car.

In his application, Williams indicated that his “life experiences” gave him “the ability to empathize with others and also to be a source of information and direction when citizens are faced with unexpected problems.”