GA Police Dept. Under Fire for Using Black Man Image As Shooting Target

*(CNN) — A metro Atlanta police department is receiving backlash after posting images and video on social media of a Black man being used on a poster as a shooting target during a firearms safety class.

The video and images show officers with the Villa Rica Police Department holding a firearms safety class earlier this month where civilians are seen firing shots at posters with an African American man on them.

The posting has since been removed.

In an interview with CNN affiliate WSB TV, Villa Rica Police Chief Michael Mansour said, “The perception of it looks like we have people just shooting at Black guys and that’s not at all what it was.”

Black Man Image as shooting target (Villa Rica Police Department-WSB)

Mansour told WSB that they started off using a target of a White male wearing a face mask but ran out of that target and ended up using the poster showing the Black man.

On Tuesday, the police department issued a statement on Facebook apologizing for the social media post. “The targets utilized in our recent firearms class depict realistic human images and were part of a package, which included target images of people from various ethnic groups. It was never our intention to be insensitive, inflammatory, or offensive to anyone,” the statement read.

CNN is seeking comment from the Villa Rica Police Department.

Villa Rica Mayor Gil McDougal said in a statement that he is “personally embarrassed” for what he calls an “offensive” post.

“This administration will be asking our human resources director and the city attorney to select an outside organization to review how this entire incident came about, not just the post itself,” McDougal said.

The Carroll County NAACP said the department’s apology lacked sincerity and sensitivity towards minority residents.

“This target is extremely offensive to many Villa Rica and Carroll County residents. These types of targets have been used by other police departments within the U.S and have been deemed racially inappropriate and unacceptable,” the organization said in a statement.

Villa Rica is located about 30 miles west of Atlanta.