Rams Issue Apology Following Sunday's Gesture to Ferguson Protestors (UPDATED)

Following Sunday's display of a gesture of solidarity with the Ferguson protesters, Rams Chief Operating Officer Kevin Demoff issued a formal apology to St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar today. Per the story from the P-D's Jim Thomas, here was the email from Belmar to the police department:

Members of the Department,

I received a very nice call this morning from Mr. Kevin Demoff of the St. Louis Rams who wanted to take the opportunity to apologize to our department on behalf of the Rams for the "Hands Up" gesture that some players took the field with yesterday.

Mr. Demoff clearly regretted that any members of the Ram's organization would act in a way that minimized the outstanding work that police officers and departments carry out each and every day. My impression of the call was that it was heartfelt and I assured him that I would share it with my staff.

Thank you for your hard work, ... one night to go. Stay safe.

Belmar

Neither the Rams nor the NFL will levy any disciplinary action on the players involved.

(UPDATED by 3k at 10:33pm ET)

Here's the official statement from the Rams:

We had positive discussions today with St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department Chief Sam Dotson, St. Louis County Chief of Police Chief Jon Belmar and representatives from the St. Louis Police Officers’ Association and St. Louis County Police Association during which we expressed our respect for their concerns surrounding yesterday’s game. What has transpired over the past four months is a tragedy that has impacted our entire community. Together we are beginning a healing process that will require time, energy and honest dialogue. The Rams will continue to build on what have always been strong and valued relationships with local law enforcement and the greater St. Louis community as we come together to help heal our region.

(UPDATED by 3k at 10:45pm ET)

Welp. This ain't going away any time soon.

"At no time in any of the conversations did I apologize for the actions of our players." -- Kevin Demoff to me just a moment ago.

— Nick Wagoner (@nwagoner) December 2, 2014

Demoff said he expressed remorse about how the actions of the players were construed but did not apologize for the actions themselves.

— Nick Wagoner (@nwagoner) December 2, 2014

(UPDATED by 3k at 11:40pm ET)

Response from St. Louis County PD: