Flint Expatriates: Suing to speak

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Suing to speak

Oh wait...suddenly the Flint cop who got canned after he spoke to the media is back on the job. I guess it was all a big misunderstanding, not retribution by city hall for an officer exercising his right to free speech.

Dana DeFever of The Flint Journal reports:

"A Flint police officer who claimed he was fired Thursday for talking to the media has his job back, according to the officer's attorney.
"Sgt. Rick Hetherington received a hand-delivered letter Saturday saying that the decision to terminate him had been rescinded, said his attorney Gregory T. Gibbs in a message Saturday night.

"No other details are available.

"When contacted Sunday, Mayor Don Williamson said he didn't know anything about the situation."

Meanwhile, the Journal's Bryn Mickle reports:

"The American Civil Liberties Union is taking the City of Flint to court over its ban on police officers talking to the media.
"The lawsuit was filed in federal court Wednesday and asks a federal judge to strike down the ban.

"The ACLU will seek an injunction if the city doesn't drop the ban immediately.

"The suit names three police officers as plaintiffs: Sgt. Rick Hetherington, Sgt. Lee Ann Gaspar and Lt. David Winch.

"In addition to asking a judge to rule the speech ban unconstitutional, the lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for Hetherington and Winch."

1 comment:

bustdupAugust 27, 2008 at 7:57 PM
yeah, ain't it rich?! and Super Chief or Big Dix sending the Detectives knock-knock-knocking on ACORN's front door over a bounced 200$ check?! Break it open slowly Opie!! Don the Con strikes FEAR in the hearts of All who Rise and Stand against his dictatorship!All the murders in Flint, and The FPD having to play foul hardball for the former felon. almost...almost as ridiculous as the "crack-down". and petty.
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Thanks for commenting. I moderate comments, so it may take a while for your comment to appear. You might enjoy my book about Flint called "Teardown: Memoir of a Vanishing City," a Michigan Notable Book for 2014 and a finalist for the 33rd Annual Northern California Book Award for Creative NonFiction. Filmmaker Michael Moore described Teardown as "a brilliant chronicle of the Mad Maxization of a once-great American city." More information about Teardown is available at www.teardownbook.com.

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