LaGrange police chief to be honored in Washington D.C. for courage by Anti-Defamation League

Louis Dekmar, the police chief in LaGrange, Ga, will be honored at the John F. Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. by the Anti-Defamation League.

According to a press release, he is being honored on Oct. 30 for his “exceptional strength, courage, and compassion when confronted by the forces of hate.”

He is one of only four people in the country being honored at the 23rd Annual Anti-Defamation League Concert Against hate.

He is being honored for being “a hero in the battle against intolerance, injustice and extremism.”

In January, Dekmar, LaGrange Mayor Jim Thornton, LaGrange College President Dan McAlexander, along with other community and faith members apologized for the department’s involvement in the 1940 lynching death of Austin Callaway, an African-American teen. After the teen’s’ death, officials did not investigate attempt to find Callaway’s killers.

In the release, the Anti-Defamtion League’s Doron Ezickson said “Chief Louis Dekmar recognized the power and responsibility of his office in moving his department and the citizens of LaGrange toward racial reconciliation.”

Dekmar says in the release, “This would not have been possible without the support of Debra Tatum, NAACP President Ernest Ward, Mayor Thornton, President Dan McAlexander, city leaders and our faith community.”

This story was originally published September 25, 2017 at 4:06 PM with the headline "LaGrange police chief to be honored in Washington D.C. for courage by Anti-Defamation League."