A Louisiana policeman who suggested on Facebook that high-profile U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez needed to be shot was fired on Monday, along with a second officer who "liked" his post.
Officers Charles Rispoli, a 14-year veteran of the Gretna Police Department who made the social media comment on Thursday, and Angelo Varisco, who "liked" it, were terminated following a swift internal investigation, Chief Arthur Lawson told a news conference.
"This incident we feel has been an embarrassment to our department. These officers acted in a manner which was unprofessional, alluding to a violent act to be conducted a sitting U.S. congresswoman," Lawson said.
He said an internal investigation had found that both men were in violation of the police department's social media policy, on which they had been trained. The department would consider further instruction on the issue for the rest of its employees, Lawson said.
The incident came just days after U.S. President Donald Trump touched off a furore by tweeting that Ocasio-Cortez and three of her colleagues in Congress, all women of colour, should "go back" where they came from if they were unhappy in the United States.
