MADISON, Wis. — Documents show that a Wisconsin prison guard was ordered to serve a one-day suspension for a joke he posted on Facebook about President Barack Obama and lynching, according to a newspaper report published Sunday.
Collin Visser posted in December a photo of Christmas tree ornaments depicting Obama and the text: "Look guys. Obama Christmas ornaments. Suddenly it's legal to hang a black man from a tree again!" the Wisconsin State Journal reported. The newspaper said it obtained documents last week revealing his punishment months after first requesting them under the state's open records law.
Visser, who has worked at the Dodge County Correctional Institution in Waupun since April 2014, shared the image in the comments section of a newspaper's Facebook post about a Black Lives Matter rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
The documents show that Warden Marc Clements told Visser in January that he would be suspended for one day and required to attend diversity training for what the warden called a "serious act of misconduct."
Visser did not immediately return a call from The Associated Press seeking comment Sunday. He didn't respond to the newspaper's request for comment.
The investigation found Visser violated four department work rules, Clements said, including those relating to harassment and exercising good judgment. Visser was ordered to serve his suspension on Feb. 11.
"Your use of social media in this demeaning and derogatory manner is not only a reflection of you but on every DOC staff member," Clements told Visser in a letter dated Jan. 28. "It runs counter to every part of our mission and cannot be tolerated."
Visser told a state investigator he did not create the image. In an interview and written statement, Visser told investigators he "meant no harm" by posting the image. He said he's not a racist and asked to be allowed to keep his job.
"I meant it as a joke," Visser said. "When I looked back at it, I realized that it was stupid and I deleted it."
The State Journal said the department released Clements' letter to Visser on Wednesday only after refusing multiple times to say how Visser was disciplined.
The newspaper obtained the documents under the same open records law that was the subject of an attempted rollback slipped into the state budget by Republican lawmakers late Thursday. Amid a stinging backlash, Gov. Scott Walker and GOP legislative leaders agreed Saturday to remove the provision.
