MIAMI (Legal Newsline) - Firefighters who lost their jobs and sued the City of Miami and its fire chief for allegedly linking two events - penises drawn on a Black colleague's family photos and the later placement of a string resembling a noose on one of the pictures - had no case, an appeals court ruled, citing the absolute immunity afforded government officials for actions taken “within the scope of their duties.”
Firefighters David Rivera, Kevin Meizoso and Justin Rumbaugh were fired after an incident in which the colleague’s photos were defaced with phallic images and days later by a noose. An internal investigation concluded the three men may have been involved in drawing the phallic images but found no evidence they were responsible for the noose.
The three sued Miami and Fire Chief Joseph Zahlraban for slander and defamation after the chief held a 2017 press conference in which he told reporters that six men, including the three plaintiffs, were fired over a “hideous, distasteful act of hate” that he described as “the incident,” singular.
The press release included termination letters and photos of the fired men. Rivera, Meizoso and Rumbaugh sued, claiming that by describing the two incidents as one, they were falsely depicted as racists for placing the noose over the photos. The city moved to dismiss all claims on the basis of absolute immunity, which protects governments from having to defend themselves in court.
A trial court dismissed most of the claims but kept alive the defamation and slander actions. Florida’s Third District Court of Appeal, in an Aug. 24 decision, reversed the trial court and dismissed all claims.
While the three firefighters’ involvement, “if any, was limited to drawing the phallic images on the photos,” the court observed, the fire chief was acting within the scope of his professional duties when he held the news conference, and therefore protected by absolute immunity.