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Firefighter Fired Over Facebook Post of Virtual Firefighter Video
HATZEL VELA
WCSC 5
Reprinted with Permission
COLLETON COUNTY, SC - A Colleton County paramedic and firefighter was fired over a video he posted on Facebook.
Related
On February 11, Jason Brown was called into the director's office and questioned about the video he posted the previous night.
The Facebook post takes you to a YouTube-like site, where a video almost three minutes in length shows an exchange between two cartoon characters at a hospital.
One is a doctor, the other a paramedic.
In a letter of dismissal Brown provided, Colleton County Fire-Rescue Director Barry McRoy said, "You [Brown] displayed poor judgment in producing a derogatory video depicting a member of this department with a physician which is implied to be at Colleton Medical Center."
"There was no malicious attack to anybody involved personally or countywide or any certain department ever," said Brown, who spent two hours making what he described as a text-to-movie video.
On the web site xtranormal.com, you can create characters and even make them look like you. Users can type in a script and the cartoon-like character will say what you write.
"I'm not trying to make any doctor or any nurse look stupid," Brown said.
He said he wasn't even talking about Colleton Medical. He only used the name of a doctor who works at that hospital because he had recently seen him at a party.
It was supposed to be a funny, exaggerated and an almost unbelievable story of real life on-the-job experiences, Brown said.
"It's just general things that go on in the day-to-day business of us running calls within any fire department, any EMS," he added.
The dismissal letter also said, "This video has created an embarrassing situation for this department, our public image and the cooperative relationship we enjoy with Colleton Medical Center. It reflects poorly on you and Colleton County."
Brown appealed the decision, but his appeal was denied.
[See the rejection of appeal letter (pdf).]
Brown never meant any harm, he said.
"If I knew it was going to give me this much headache, I never would have made it in the first place," he added.
Brown said he was told his video was racist because the cartoon character playing the doctor role was African-American and during one of the exchanges the character said, "I don't want to lose my job and go back to being a janitor."
"That was never, ever in my actions or even thoughts when I made the video," Brown said.
When making the video, a black doctor was the only option offered, he added.
Getting fired was a little overboard, he said.
McRoy wouldn't give details about the Brown's firing because he said he couldn't discuss personnel matters.
But he said the Facebook incident wasn't the only reason Brown was fired.
Brown said he has never been seriously reprimanded and points to the dismissal letter as proof the Facebook post was the only reason he was fired.
If asked to take down the post, he would have done it and that would have been the end, he said.
Brown said after he was fired, he was escorted to the station where he returned all his gear, while two officers supervised him.
"I felt like a criminal," he said.
Prior to working at Colleton County Fire-Rescue for three and a half years, he worked at Berkeley County EMS and Goose Creek City Fire.
He said he left those two places because Colleton County paid more.
WCSC 5
Reprinted with Permission
COLLETON COUNTY, SC - A Colleton County paramedic and firefighter was fired over a video he posted on Facebook.
Related
- Colleton County Disciplinary Policy
- Brown's termination Letter
- Rejection Appeal Letter
- STATTer911: Watch Out, This Could Be a Firing Offense
The Facebook post takes you to a YouTube-like site, where a video almost three minutes in length shows an exchange between two cartoon characters at a hospital.
One is a doctor, the other a paramedic.
In a letter of dismissal Brown provided, Colleton County Fire-Rescue Director Barry McRoy said, "You [Brown] displayed poor judgment in producing a derogatory video depicting a member of this department with a physician which is implied to be at Colleton Medical Center."
"There was no malicious attack to anybody involved personally or countywide or any certain department ever," said Brown, who spent two hours making what he described as a text-to-movie video.
On the web site xtranormal.com, you can create characters and even make them look like you. Users can type in a script and the cartoon-like character will say what you write.
"I'm not trying to make any doctor or any nurse look stupid," Brown said.
He said he wasn't even talking about Colleton Medical. He only used the name of a doctor who works at that hospital because he had recently seen him at a party.
It was supposed to be a funny, exaggerated and an almost unbelievable story of real life on-the-job experiences, Brown said.
"It's just general things that go on in the day-to-day business of us running calls within any fire department, any EMS," he added.
The dismissal letter also said, "This video has created an embarrassing situation for this department, our public image and the cooperative relationship we enjoy with Colleton Medical Center. It reflects poorly on you and Colleton County."
Brown appealed the decision, but his appeal was denied.
[See the rejection of appeal letter (pdf).]
Brown never meant any harm, he said.
"If I knew it was going to give me this much headache, I never would have made it in the first place," he added.
Brown said he was told his video was racist because the cartoon character playing the doctor role was African-American and during one of the exchanges the character said, "I don't want to lose my job and go back to being a janitor."
"That was never, ever in my actions or even thoughts when I made the video," Brown said.
When making the video, a black doctor was the only option offered, he added.
Getting fired was a little overboard, he said.
McRoy wouldn't give details about the Brown's firing because he said he couldn't discuss personnel matters.
But he said the Facebook incident wasn't the only reason Brown was fired.
Brown said he has never been seriously reprimanded and points to the dismissal letter as proof the Facebook post was the only reason he was fired.
If asked to take down the post, he would have done it and that would have been the end, he said.
Brown said after he was fired, he was escorted to the station where he returned all his gear, while two officers supervised him.
"I felt like a criminal," he said.
Prior to working at Colleton County Fire-Rescue for three and a half years, he worked at Berkeley County EMS and Goose Creek City Fire.
He said he left those two places because Colleton County paid more.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Ben Waller on
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You are correct - my mistake, and I apologize for it.
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"Sense of humor" when the video can be interpreted as slander against the physician???
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Permalink Reply by David Johns on
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Ben, I appreciate your response, I'm just coming from the discipline should fit the crime side which in my experience is effective because people need guidance and direction. I just think termination is interesting in this case because so many issues fall into this generic policy and interpretations by lawyers are broad and do not always seek the truth of many situations. It will be interesting to see what judges rule on in the future, I just want to see the person be considered within the framework of policy not just the technicalities of it.
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Permalink Reply by Joseph McMahon on
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It is possible that a court would not uphold the punishment of termination if the firefighter can show similar cases where other county employees have embarrassed the county and didn’t get fired. His argument would be that he was singled out for excessive punishment. If this happened, he might get his job back, but suffer some other sort of punishment, more in line with the type of punishment meted out to other employees for similar offenses. It should be an interesting case to follow if it goes to court…
Joe Mc
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Permalink Reply by Tamara Smith (Sparky) on
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I can understand policies, etc. but this is ridiculous, get a sense of humor
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It's also possible that a court would rule in favor of the plaintiff if the physician sued the terminated employee for slander.
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I don't think it is likely that a court would care about personal litigation. They are expected to interpret the law and to be as consistent as possible in doing so. They must not let their personal opinions interfere with the law. That said, do they make mistakes? Yes. Are some corrupt? Yes. But this is what we have "appeals" courts for.
Judges have something similar to "batting averages". When they get a decision turned over on appeal, it is like a strike against them. Believe me, someone is keeping track of these things.
When a judge is considered for a higher court, their record of interpreting the law is looked at. Judges (imo) don't want to be wrong "on the law". It is an embarrassment to them amongst their peers (other attorneys and judges) and can hurt their chances of being considered for other positions, if it is believed that they don't know how to interpret the law.
Joe Mc
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I'm well aware of that, but in any civil suit that results from this incident, it won't be a judge making the decision(s), it will be a civil jury.
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Permalink Reply by Art "ChiefReason" Goodrich on
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After an exhaustive search for precedent setting cases, I can say with a degree of uncertainty that any trial that includes the use of social media and a termination, it could very well be a precedent-setting case.
I did see an article that made it clear that a blog site does not have the same free speech protections of a newspaper, for instance.
I saw another case where a firefighter was suspended by the city he worked for for having a big sign in the back of his pick up bed that said that the "mayor lied". He was suspended and it was upheld because he violated a department policy; not because he exercised his right to free speech.
And when members of a fire department potentially slanders or libels someone else, you'd better hope that the fire department is NOT brought in to the lawsuit as the employer of the charged employee.
Better check your insurance policy on that one. Good chance that you don't have it.
Cha-ching.
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Permalink Reply by Cindy Jodrey on
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lol....thank u :D u rock :D
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:D
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Civil suits can be heard by a judge or a jury. It will be the defendants (or in this case "respondent") option...
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