A Gainesville Fire Department employee was suspended without pay after an “inappropriate” comment about protesters was made from his Facebook account, officials said. However, authorities said he was not the person who posted the remarks.
An investigation revealed that the employee’s spouse was responsible for the comment, according to Gainesville City Manager Bryan Lackey.
“During our investigation, both the employee and his spouse both stated that the spouse had typed and posted the remarks on Facebook,” Lackey said.
The incident happened amid a series of protests over police brutality against Black people. Demonstrators gathered in Gainesville on May 30 after the death of George Floyd, who was killed while in police custody in Minneapolis.
RELATED: Official says fire employee's 'inappropriate' post targeted citizenship of protesters
The comment, which Lackey previously called “distasteful and baseless,” referenced the citizenship status of some of the participants, officials said. Lackey said it appeared during a live stream of the protest. The exact wording of the comment was not disclosed, and the remark has since been deleted.
Officials learned of the post the morning after the protest, Lackey previously said in a statement.
“Saturday evening, the city of Gainesville served as the backdrop of an impassioned demonstration, which we understand remained peaceful for the most part,” Lackey said in the statement. “The activities were streamed publicly via Facebook Live on a number of social media pages, enabling participation — including commentary — by those watching.”
RELATED: 9 arrested, 6 police cars damaged after protest in Gainesville
The couple were not together when the post was made, Lackey said. The firefighter told authorities he was not aware of the post until another employee contacted him about it the following day.
“While this finding did lessen the impacts and involvement of the employee, we still proceeded with a disciplinary action as all employees are responsible for any posts or remarks made from a social media account associated with their name,” Lackey said.
The employee was given a one-week suspension. It is not clear when the suspension began or ended.
“Additionally, the employee was strongly advised to no longer have any joint social media accounts,” Lackey said.
In other news:
