Houston Chronicle
HOUSTON — A veteran arson investigator with the Houston Fire Department apparently violated the municipal social media policy by posting “hate speech” directed at Muslims on his personal Facebook page, the city’s top lawyer said.
Bryon Miller, 45, an employee since 1990 and an arson investigator since 2002, has been placed on paid desk duty pending completion of an internal affairs investigation. He is the second fire department employee accused of violating the city’s 2011 social media policy since late June.
Miller allegedly posted obscene references to Islam and Muslims against a backdrop of an American flag, and claimed that he was a “proud infidel.”
City Attorney David Feldman said Tuesday that although the material “purportedly” appeared on a private Web page, Miller alluded to his city employment and included the Fire Department logo in his postings.
Ruth Nasrullah, communications coordinator for the Houston office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said the posting apparently occurred in the wake of early September’s ISIS beheading of American-Israeli journalist Steven Sotloff.
Houston CAIR Executive Director Mustafaa Carroll said his organization is “disgusted” by the post and called on Fire Chief Terry Garrison to order diversity training for Miller and, possibly, for the entire 4,000-person department. Carroll also called on Miller to make a public apology to Muslims, and for the city to revise its social media policy to specifically ban profanity, racial, religious, ethnic and gender-based slurs and hate-filled messages.
“Violations of this policy should also be subject to further disciplinary action not to exclude probation, suspension and termination,” Carroll said.
Fire Department spokesman Senior Capt. Ruy Lozano did not specify what penalty Miller may face if authorities determine he violated policy.
But he said the alleged offense was Miller’s first, and that the arson investigator has “an incredible service record.”
Miller is a member of the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association.
“We are aware of the allegations and want to ensure that the city conducts a proper investigation. The city’s inconsistent enforcement of policies regarding on- and off-duty employee social media activity remains a concern,” Alvin White, the union’s interim president, said in an email.
“If this allegation is true, we will seek a fair and sensible resolution of the problem within our disciplinary system.”
Miller is the second Fire Department employee to face investigation for alleged social media infractions since late June.
Emergency medical technician Kerry Williams was accused of posting Facebook references to his search for a “drunk Mexican” after a deadly accident on Lake Houston. Victor Gonzalez, 47, drowned when he swam away from a friend’s boat, but, his daughter Gracie Gonzalez insisted, was not intoxicated.
“When I saw it,” the woman said of Williams’ post, “I was devastated. It makes the whole department look bad.”
Like Miller, Williams was placed on desk duty as an internal investigation was conducted. Lozano said Williams tendered his resignation before the probe was completed.
Both men were accused of violation of policy provisions that advise city employees to refrain from posting items they would not want their supervisors of fellow workers to see or that would be embarrassing if they appeared in newspapers or on television.
Ronald Turner, a professor of employment and constitutional law at the University of Houston Law Center, said public employees do not relinquish their First Amendment rights.
“They are free to speak out on what are matters of public concern, things like tax policy or even their affiliation as Republicans or Democrats,” Turner said. “The first issue in this posting is whether it was a matter of public concern or just an expression of personal views on Islam.”
The right to comment on public matters, though, also must be balanced against its impact on an employer’s ability to efficiently provide public services, he said.
“You have the right to make your statement but if it causes bad morale or it impairs your ability to do investigations with full public confidence, that could be a problem,” Turner said. “I can verily easily see the city make that kind of case.”
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