Corrections Officer’s Firing Over Facebook Posts Upheld by Court

A Wisconsin corrections officer, who was fired for making offensive posts on Facebook, lost his appeal of a ruling that his due process and First Amendment rights weren’t violated.

Law-enforcement offices have substantial latitude to determine whether an employee’s speech undermines the effective operation of their functions, Chief Judge Diane S. Sykes said Thursday for the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.

A local newspaper accused deputy warden Richard S. Schneiter of making posts that denigrated various minorities and the LGBTQ community and called the Confederate flag, “our flag.” The Wisconsin Department of Corrections investigated and then fired ...