Atlanta cop suspended after mayor threat

ATLANTA, May 24 (UPI) -- The head of the Atlanta police union has been suspended after he allegedly said he wanted to hit Mayor Shirley Franklin in the head with a bat, officials say.

Atlanta Police Chief Richard Pennington announced Saturday that Sgt. Scott Kreher, president of the International Brotherhood of Police Officers Local 23, was suspended, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

"The Atlanta Police Department does not condone nor will we tolerate supervisors making irresponsible and inflammatory remarks against the mayor or any citizen of the City of Atlanta," Pennington said in a statement.

Kreher on Tuesday allegedly told Atlanta City Council members that he wanted to hit the mayor "in the head with a baseball bat," the report said. He later apologized for the statement, but Franklin did not accept, saying she would file federal and state complaints against the police sergeant, the newspaper reported.

The Journal-Constitution said Kreher could not be reached Saturday night for comment.