During a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight, Dog the Bounty Hunter star Duane “Dog” Champman claimed that he had a “pass” to use the n-word. Since then, many individuals have weighed in on the reality star’s bizarre comments. According to TMZ, Chapman’s former pastor, Tim Storey, is even speaking out on the matter.
Storey, who is Black, told TMZ that he is still close with Chapman, whom he has been friends with for nearly 20 years. He also said that he saw Chapman’s ET interview and noted that he had a conversation with him about it. The pastor told the Dog the Bounty Hunter star that his comments were “not wise” and that he did not have a “pass” to say the n-word as he claimed. Storey said that Chapman did agree with him.
Chapman’s former pastor went on to defend him while speaking with TMZ. He said that the reality TV personality has a good heart despite this controversy. He also stressed that Chapman is not a racist and that he is willing to learn from his mistakes. Additionally, Storey claimed that he has never heard Chapman use the n-word aside from his racial-slur-filled rant that leaked back in 2007. As you might recall, in 2007, a phone call between Chapman and his son was leaked by the National Enquirer in which he could be heard using the n-word several times.
Chapman came under fire again most recently for his interview with ET. In the interview, which was published on Wednesday and saw him speaking with the outlet’s Kevin Frazier, a Black man, Chapman claimed that he got a “pass” to use the racial slur. The matter was brought up as he explained that his daughter, Bonnie Chapman, was not invited to his wedding to Francie Frane after she accused him of being racist and homophobic. Bonnie also accused him of being unfaithful to her mother and his late wife, Beth Chapman.
“As hard as it is and as heartbreaking as it is, we had to make a decision that was very difficult for us,” Frane told ET. “We’ve been through hell, him and I, in the past three years. …And I am not going to allow our day to be ruined by this nonsense.” Chapman addressed his daughter’s racism allegations by saying, “I have never been a racist. I’m 33.5 percent Apache. But because of over 15 years ago, I have an Achilles’ heel because I used the wrong word.”
Chapman continued to address those allegations and even touched upon that aforementioned 2007 rant. He claimed, “I thought I had a pass in the Black tribe to use it, kind of like Eminem.” Frazier then pressed him on who specifically gave him this “pass,” to which he eventually said that it was “the brothers” and that he got “the pass” when he was in prison. “I had just gotten out of prison in 1979 after spending time, 18 months in Texas and it was probably three-fourths from the Black tribe. So that was a word that we used back and forth, as maybe a compliment,” Chapman said. “My pass expired for using it but no one told me that.”