PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — The Providence police union is calling for an apology from New England Patriots defensive tackle Christian Barmore after he accused officers of racism during a recent traffic stop.

In a now-deleted post on X (formerly Twitter), Barmore, 25, claimed he "just experienced for the first time 5 Providence cops being very unprofessional, racism at its finest."

However, Michael Imondi, president of the Providence Fraternal Order of Police, disagreed, saying Barmore's claims were unwarranted.

"He decides to go on social media and say that this was a racially motivated incident and that's just completely untrue," Imondi said.

BACKGROUND: Patriots' Barmore accuses Providence police of racism after traffic stop

According to the police report, Barmore was pulled over in his Jeep due to window tint and a cover that obstructed the reading of his license plate.

"It's tinted glass. We don't know who's in the car. We don't know if it's an Asian, Spanish, Caucasian, or Black man," Imondi explained. "We don't know until you roll down the window. So the stop did not happen based upon racism."

The report also noted that Barmore displayed an "attitude" and handed over his paperwork "in an aggressive manner." Officers then discovered his registration had expired the previous week.

Body-worn camera (BWC) footage obtained by 12 News showed the situation escalating after Barmore was asked to exit the vehicle. He repeatedly refused and, once out of the car, was heard shouting, "Stop touching me" multiple times.

Barmore was eventually allowed to leave, but his car was towed. He was cited for operating an unregistered vehicle, improper display of plates, and driving with expired registration.

After reviewing the BWC video, Imondi said the officers did nothing wrong and the incident could have been avoided with "just a little bit of compliance."

"Someone of his stature, being a public figure in the New England Patriots organization and whatnot—a football star—has a lot of followers, and a lot of those people will take his words to heart. That creates issues for our officers on the street," Imondi added.

While Barmore's post has since been deleted, Imondi is calling for an equally public apology.

"We've been beaten up over the last few years as police officers, law enforcement as a whole. Maybe some of it was warranted, some of it was not. In this instance, it's not," Imondi said. "Those people who continue to use this as a platform need to be called out for it. This is the reason why we want an apology because those officers deserve it."

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