Florida principal of 99% minority school 'commends' McKinney officer for roughing up teen girl

A Florida principal -- whose school reportedly has a 99 percent minority student body -- apologized this week after he praised the actions of a police officer in McKinney, Texas who was caught on video slamming a 14-year-old black girl's face into the ground at a pool party.

Screen captures obtained by The Miami Herald showed that North Miami Senior High School Principal Alberto Iber argued in the comments section of the paper's website that officer David Eric Casebolt had been right to manhandle the girl and to draw his weapon on other unarmed teens.

“He did nothing wrong,” Iber insisted. “He was afraid for his life. I commend him for his actions.”

Retired police veteran Ambrose Sims, who worked for the Miami Beach Police during a period of intense racial tension in the 1980s, fired back at Iber.

“Such a comment reveals to me that you’re a serious part of the problem," Sims wrote.

According the The Miami Herald, Iber's remarks were later deleted, but not before the screen captures had begun circulating on social media.

“I support law enforcement, and also the community and students that I serve as the proud principal of North Miami Senior High," Iber said in a prepared statement on Tuesday. “The comment I posted was simply made as the result of a short video that I watched and my personal opinion.”

The principal explained that he had intended the comment to be anonymous.

“I regret that I posted the comment as it apparently became newsworthy and has apparently upset people," he said. “That was not my intention in any way.”

Iber was removed from his post on Wednesday. A spokesperson told Local10.com that Iber had violated school policy by failing to conduct himself "both personally and professionally, in a manner that represents the school district's core values."