New Hampshire police commissioner resigns over President Obama N-word slur

Robert Copeland, 82, resigned on Sunday night after he was heard using the term at a restaurant in Wolfeboro in March. Copeland didn't deny using the word, according to local news station WMUR. Photograph: Jim Cole/AP

Story by the Guardian
Written by Jessica Glenza

A small-town New England police commissioner, who came under fire after he was heard using the N-word to describe President Barack Obama, has resigned.

Robert Copeland, 82, of Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, became the subject of a town meeting and dedicated Facebook page after he was heard describing the President as a "f#@king n-word" at a local restaurant in March.

When a Wolfeboro resident confronted Copeland, he didn't deny using the word, and stood by his usage of it, WMUR reported.

"I believe I did use the 'N' word in reference to the current occupant of the White House … For this I do not apologize – he meets and exceeds my criteria as such," Copeland wrote in a letter to Jane O'Toole, the Wolfeboro resident who'd overheard him.

On May 15, Copeland was the subject of a packed town meeting. More than 100 residents attended, many of them in order to express disgust at the racial slur he'd used.

Former Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, who owns a home in the area, called Copeland's remarks a "vile epithet" that have, "no place in our community," the Boston Herald reported. "He should apologize and resign,” Romney said.

Copeland resigned Sunday night via email, according to WMUR. He was one of three elected commissioners in Wolfeboro. His term was set to expire in 2017.