3 Anne Arundel Co. Employees Disciplined After Making Noose, Joking About It
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WJZ)—Three Anne Arundel County employees have been disciplined after a joke with racist undertones is reported to a supervisor.
Rochelle Ritchie explains what happened.
Officials in Anne Arundel County will not say which department the trio works for, but all three remain on the job.
What started as a joke between three Anne Arundel County employees has outraged county executive Laura Neuman.
"I was disappointed this would happen in county government," Neuman said. "It's unacceptable. It speaks to a culture of intolerance and at the very least a culture of insensitivity."
On August 2, the county executive says a county employee made a noose while on the job in front of a black coworker.
In a report written by a supervisor in Anne Arundel County, they say a white employee made the noose, and then a black employee said he must be part of the KKK. Two weeks later, that black employee noticed the noose hanging somewhere else, and he notified his supervisor.
"I can't speculate on how the employees perceived it at the time, but what I do know is it's an uncomfortable situation and should be addressed immediately," Neuman said.
All three employees were disciplined. Even the black employee who reported the noose was punished.
Neuman says she was made aware of the incident a month later and notified the county's office of Law,
Personnel and Minority Affairs, which decided the punishment handed down was sufficient.
Last year, Neuman started cultural sensitivity classes for county employees.
No word on where the noose was found hanging, but it was in view of the public.
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