*As questions about the suicide of Black Lives Matter activist MarShawn M. McCarrel II remain unanswered, a Fairborn, Ohio-based police officer is feeling the effect of classifying the tragedy as a “happy ending.”
The Washington Post cites a story from WDTN-TV, which revealed Monday that officer Lee Cyr has been fired for the remark after being placed on administrative leave following an internal complaint that alerted the Fairborn Police Department to what he put on Facebook in response to news of McCarrel’s death last month.
The dismissal comes after McCarrel went on Facebook on Feb. 8 to foreshadow what would happen to him with the following post:
“My demons won today. I’m sorry.”
Soon after writing his post, McCarrel shot himself dead that night as he stood on the steps of the Ohio statehouse. Since the suicide, McCarrel’s friends and family as well as police have been unable to explain why he took his life.
Prior to his death, McCarrel was noted for being a prominent local activist who coordinated Black Lives Matter protests after Michael Brown was fatally shot by police in in Ferguson, Mo. in 2014. In addition, McCarrel founded Pursuing Our Dreams, a nonprofit that provided monthly homemade lunches to the homeless.
Responding to the news of McCarrel’s death, Cyr showed no sympathy, saying, “Love a happy ending.”
Dayton Daily News reports the comment was among various unsympathetic responses from other people, who posted remarks such as “What a hypocrite” and “One less to worry about.”
The Fairborn Police Department weighed in on Cyr’s firing in a statement that acknowledged that the officer’s Facebook post violated its social media policy. In the eyes of local Black Lives Matter activists, Cyr’s comment shines a light on a few of the issues the movement is working to combat.
“We have received a lot of negative responses,” Tristina Allen, a fellow organizer who knew McCarrel told Dayton Daily News in February. “I think it is completely unacceptable for someone who is supposed to protect and serve to have that comment towards someone who is dead.”
Scroll below for a mention of Cyr’s situation on social media:
Ohio Officer Lee Cyr suspended for calling the suicide of #MarshawnMcCarrel a “happy ending” https://t.co/LpAckz1CNK pic.twitter.com/2IzMO6zj9R
— Shaun King (@ShaunKing) February 12, 2016
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