A Democratic congresswoman from Irvine called the city’s police department a “disgrace” in text messages allegedly sent to Irvine Mayor Farrah Khan in 2021.
Rep. Katie Porter (D-Irvine)—an outspoken critic of law enforcement following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis—reportedly sent the messages to the mayor after one of her supporters was arrested at a town hall last July.
A scuffle broke out at the event between protesters and Porter’s supporters, during which Julian Willis was arrested by Irvine police after he allegedly punched a protester in the nose and was later released on a citation, according to media reports. Willis lives with Porter at her Irvine residence, property records show.
In a screenshot of the messages obtained by The Epoch Times, Porter told Khan the day after the incident she was meeting with the Irvine chief of police later that day.
“I will never trust them again,” Porter said. “Well, your police force is a disgrace.”
Khan appeared to be unaware of what disappointed Porter at the time and requested Porter to call her about her concerns, according to the text thread.
Porter’s spokesman Jordan Wong told Fox News, which first reported on the messages, the congresswoman “was upset that a planned family-friendly town hall was hijacked by extremists, who made constituents feel unsafe, including using hateful slurs in front of children.”
Wong said that since the event, Porter and her office have worked “productively” with Irvine Police Department, including hosting the new police chief at her office for a “constructive and cooperative meeting.”
Running against Katie Porter for the congressional seat at the time, Republican Nick Taurus asked his supporters on social media to join him at the town hall to “confront Katie Porter,” according to local media reports.
The Epoch Times reached out to Porter’s office for comment, but did not hear back by deadline.
