Officer fired for donating to Rittenhouse's defense fund wants job back
NORFOLK, Va. (TND) — A police officer in Virginia who was fired for donating to Kyle Rittenhouse's defense fund now says he wants his job back.
Norfolk Lieutenant William Kelly reportedly donated $25 to help fund Rittenhouse's legal fees after the teen killed two people and wounded another during a protest in Kenosha, Wis. Rittenhouse, who claimed self-defense, was found not guilty on all charges last week.
The Associated Press reported in April 2021 that Kelly used his department email address to donate and left a voice message.
"God bless. Thank you for your courage. Keep your head up. You've done nothing wrong. Every rank and file police officer supports you. Don't be discouraged by actions of the political class of law enforcement leadership," he said in the message, according to the AP.
The AP goes on to report that the donation website later experienced a data breach and Kelly, who donated anonymously, had his identity exposed.
The officer was first put on "administrative duty" before he was ultimately fired, according to reports from the Associated Press at the time.
“His egregious comments erode the trust between the Norfolk Police Department and those they are sworn to serve. The City of Norfolk has a standard of behavior for all employees, and we will hold staff accountable,” City Manager Chip Filer said in a statement in April 2021.
Now, Kelly tells the Daily Mail he is fighting to get his job back after Kyle Rittenhouse was found "not guilty" on all charges. Kelly claims he was only fired because he supported Rittenhouse.
"If I had a different opinion and I donated to a fund for the victims and made comments about how Mr. Rittenhouse was a murderer, nobody would have cared or tried to get me fired," Kelly said, according to the Daily Mail.
The Daily Mail says Kelly may not be eligible to access his pension if he doesn't get to return to his job. He was reportedly only 10 months away from being eligible at the time of his firing.
"This is America. You can agree with your neighbors and other people in your community and you can disagree with them. Just because someone has a different opinion than you, it doesn't mean you should destroy their lives, take their job away," Kelly said to the Daily Mail. "My opinion on the self-defense claim of Mr. Rittenhouse has no impact on my ability to do my job as a police officer."
Kelly told the Daily Mail that he hopes to have a hearing in regards to his reemployment by the end of January, but he also told the news outlet he wants to settle the matter privately before then.
