Sir Charles probably hasn’t been making many new friends in the black community as of late as a result of the comments he has made in regards to Mike Brown and now Eric Garner, whose lives were lost at the hands of police.

According to the New York Daily News, Barkley commented on Garner’s death during an interview with CNN. He called the idea of white cops actively seeking out ways to murder black people “flat-out ridiculous.”

“The notion that white cops are out there just killing black people is ridiculous,” he said. “It’s flat-out ridiculous.”

Eric Garner died on July 17 while being arrested for illegally selling cigarettes. Bystanders on the scene captured the entire altercation on video, and the clip quickly went viral. A medical examiner ultimately ruled the death a homicide, but Barkley strongly to disagreed with that assessment.

 “I don’t think that was a homicide,” he told CNN. “I think the cops were trying to arrest him and they got a little aggressive. I think excessive force — something like that — but to go straight to murder?

Brooke, when the cops are trying to arrest you, if you fight back, things go wrong. I don’t think they were trying to kill Mr. Garner. He was a big man and they were trying to get him down.”

Despite his own brushes with the law, Barkley also had nothing but praise for law enforcement in general.

“Cops are absolutely awesome,” he said. “They’re the only thing in the ghetto (separating this place) from this place being the wild, wild west.”

Barkley’s main point seemed to be that these cases should be judged on a standalone basis, not simply because of the victim’s race.

Do you agree with Barkley’s statements? Leave us a comment below.