DENVER – The fire chief of a small Colorado town has resigned after posting a comment on Facebook saying he would use high pressure water hoses for fun to spray demonstrators in Denver who have been protesting the police killing of George Floyd.
Lyons Fire Chief JJ Hoffman resigned Tuesday after the NAACP launched an investigation about the comment he made last month.
Hoffman’s comment was in response to a Facebook post by someone else that said Denver police should “wash all this human trash into the gutter.”
Floyd, a black man, died May 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes while he was handcuffed and lying on the ground. His death prompted protests across the U.S. and around the world against police brutality and racial injustice.
Hoffman initially apologized on Facebook before issuing a formal apology and official statement June 1, Colorado Public Radio reported.
“While my remark was made in jest, and was meant to refer to the rioters whose actions followed the peaceful daytime protests, it was brought to my attention by several community members that my remark was insensitive, particularly given the historical context of the use of water cannons to break up civil rights demonstrations,” Hoffman said.
Democratic state Rep. Jonathan Singer of Longmont, who represents Lyons, said Hoffman’s apology was not enough, and that he had lost credibility and the public’s trust.
The Lyons Fire Protection District Board of Directors issued a formal reprimand for Hoffman and said they believed his apology was sincere. He resigned a week later.
“A person with such cavalier disregard to the facts of history – a history of fire hoses and police dogs used to deter righteous, youthful protesters in the ’60s civil rights movement – does not deserve to serve in a public position,” said Rosemary Lytle, president of NAACP Colorado, Wyoming, Montana State Conference.
Before Hoffman resigned, Lyons Fire Fund President Kerry Matre also resigned and said it was because of Hoffman’s social media post.
“I feel the comment by JJ Hoffman regarding the usage of the fire department’s high-pressure bumper turret against people for fun does not serve the best interest of the community, especially given his position of authority in the community, even if made in jest,” Matre said.
