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The Times notes that the police chief’s statement didn’t address whether the officers would be facing any disciplinary actions.

“My officers did not have any malicious intent at the time of the arrest, but we have immediately changed the policy to prevent the use of this technique and will review all mounted training and procedures for more appropriate methods,” Chief Hale said. “We understand the negative perception of this action and believe it is most appropriate to cease the use of this technique. The police chief has taken immediate action to suspend this technique of transportation during arrests.”

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Leon Phillips, the president of the Galveston Coalition for Justice, told the Times that the two officers should be fired.

“If it was a white man, he wouldn’t have been treated that way,” Phillips said. “I guarantee there’s nothing in their rules that you can put a leash on a guy while you ride down the street on a horse.”

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Phillips added that images were triggering for African Americans who can remember a time when this was the norm.

“Every black person that’s over the age of 30 years old will have a thought of what it used to be like,” Mr. Phillips said. “Younger people, they have a tendency to not get emotional about something like this. I get emotional because I came from a segregated time, and people said and did whatever they wanted to.”