Who Is Lee Cyr? Ohio Police Officer Fired After Black Lives Matter Facebook Comment

An Ohio police officer who wrote comments on a Facebook post of an article about a Black Lives Matter Activist who killed himself on the Ohio Statehouse steps in February has been fired, WDTN-TV in Dayton reported Monday.

Lee Cyr, a police officer in Fairborn, Ohio, was placed on administrative leave earlier after he commented on a story about the death of MarShawn McCarrel II that read, “Love a happy ending.” He was off duty when the comment was posted.

“This action is in violation of the department’s social media policy and does not conform to the Professional Standards & Core Values established by the organization,” the Fairborn Police Department said to WDTN-TV in a statement.

The comment in question appeared alongside similar comments from others, including “One less to worry about” and “Good one down,” the Dayton Daily News reported. At the time of the comment, the Fairborn Police Department had no minority officers on the force.

McCarrel was active on social media and coordinated protests for Black Lives Matter, a social justice movement that tries to bring attention to the police killings of African-Americans. The movement gained momentum after the shootings of teens Trayvon Martin in Florida and Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and protests associated with the group have since been organized in places such as Chicago and New York City.

It remains unclear why McCarrel shot himself Feb. 8 on the Ohio Statehouse steps. “My demons won today. I’m sorry,” he posted on Facebook just before his death.

“We have received a lot of negative responses. I think it is completely unacceptable for someone who is supposed to protect and serve to have that comment toward someone who is dead,” Tristina Allen, a woman who worked with McCarrel in the Black Lives Matter movement, told the Dayton Daily News after his death.