ORLANDO — Assistant State Attorney Kenneth Lewis has been fired for a controversial Facebook post he made regarding the Orlando nightclub shooting.
The announcement of his firing was made Thursday.
He had initially been suspended for the post about Orlando that many found to be offensive.
The June 12 shooting at Pulse nightclub, carried out by gunman Omar Mateen, killed 49 people and injured dozens of others, making it the worst mass shooting in U.S. history.
After the shooting, Lewis posted a statement on his Facebook page which read, in part, “The entire city should be leveled. It is void of any redeeming quality,” and, “It is a melting pot of 3rd world miscreants and ghetto thugs.”
An official said Lewis was initially suspended because he violated SAO9's social media policy, which every employee is required to sign.
In a statement obtained by WFTV, State Attorney Jeff Ashton wrote, "Whether you intended to convey that all those who attend nightclubs are animals (the zoo reference) or whether the reference to 'debauchery' was meant to express some objection to the lifestyle choices of those who attended this club, we will never know. I cannot believe that a man of your intelligence would not realize that your comment could bear that interpretation."
Lewis said in a letter to Ashton that the social media policy is vague and that his firing was a violation of his constitutional rights.
Lewis said he signed a document indicating he will appeal the decision.
This is not the first time Lewis has made what some feel are offensive Facebook posts.
In 2014, Lewis stirred controversy after he posted, "Happy Mother's Day to all you crack hoes out there... It's never too late to tie your tubes, clean up your life...," on Facebook.
Cox Media Group
