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Ind. official fired for remarks on Twitter

By Chris Sikich and Mary Beth Schneider, The Indianapolis Star

INDIANAPOLIS — An Indiana deputy attorney general was fired Wednesday after he suggested — among many provocative remarks on a private Twitter account and blog — that police use live ammunition to clear union protesters from the state Capitol in Wisconsin.

The Indiana attorney general's office learned of the remarks after Mother Jones, a liberal nonprofit news magazine, published a story online Wednesday.

The exchange started Sunday, when Jeff Cox, 39, tweeted "use live ammunition" in response to a Mother Jones tweet that riot police had been ordered to remove union supporters from the Wisconsin state Capitol in Madison.

In the article published online, the reporter, Adam Weinstein, said he confronted Cox on Twitter.

"He tweeted back that the demonstrators were 'political enemies' and 'thugs' who were 'physically threatening legally elected officials,' " Weinstein wrote in Wednesday's article. "In response to such behavior, he said, 'You're damned right I advocate deadly force.' He later called me a 'typical leftist,' adding, 'Liberals hate police.' "

Weinstein discovered Sunday that Cox was a deputy attorney general. Cox had listed his profession only as "lawyer" on his Twitter account.

In a written statement released late Wednesday, Cox said the post was not meant to be taken literally, "and I don't think any reasonable person would conclude otherwise."

Cox admitted that he made "a lousy choice of words," which he regrets, but said the affair has been blown out of proportion. He also lamented what he considers a double standard about who can talk.

Until Sunday, Cox often tweeted every few minutes for hours. Many of his comments focused on politics, and he frequently engaged in debates.

Cox had been a deputy attorney general since October 2003. His work focused on eminent domain issues for the Indiana Department of Transportation.

He was one of more than 140 attorneys in the office.

Corbin, the attorney general's spokesman, said the agency has no formal rules on social media but is developing them. He said the employee handbook, however, is clear that employees should conduct themselves in a professional manner during and after working hours.