A report says that the New York City Fire Department will try to discover exactly which firefighters booed New York Attorney General Letitia James at a graduation ceremony last Thursday.
James, who had targeted former President Donald Trump with a civil business fraud suit, spoke at a swearing-in ceremony of first responders.
“Oh, c’mon, we’re in a house of God,” James said to the firefighters booing her. “Simmer down.”
Shortly after the boos stopped, James’ speech was interrupted by chants of “Trump! Trump! Trump!”
“Nobody is hunting anyone down,” the FDNY said in a statement, according to ABC7. “We’re looking into those who clearly broke department regulations. It has nothing to do with politics, it’s about professionalism at an official event held in a house of worship.”
FDNY Chief of Department John Hodges sent an email to other chiefs at the FDNY saying the department’s Bureau of Investigation and Trials was looking into which people had booed James and chanted “Trump” at the event, The New York Post reported. “BITS is investigating this, so they will figure out who the members are. I recommend they come forward. I have been told by the commissioner it will be better for them if they come forward and we don’t have to hunt them down. The [deputy chiefs] shall direct the captain of the company to make a list of those who come forward and send it directly to [FDNY operations]. I realize members might not come forward but they should know that there is clear video of the entire incident and they will be contacted by BITS if they don’t.”
Famed attorney Alan Dershowitz harshly criticized the FDNY’s effort to identify the booers, saying, “Firefighters have an absolute constitutional right to boo the attorney general, and the government has no power to punish them for it. So efforts to get the names of the booers is an effort by the government to chill free speech and is unconstitutional.”
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Meanwhile, the Uniformed Fire Officers Association warned its members that the FDNY had “possession of video footage of the event. … As part of this discussion, questions may be asked to specific UFOA members over their actions or their recollections.’’
“The union advised members to follow FDNY regulations but to contact the UFOA for legal representation if they feel they are the subject of an investigation,” the Post noted.
Related: Letitia James Booed During Speech At Firefighters Ceremony, Met With Chants Of ‘Trump’