Can officers be held liable for dark jokes they post online?

We’re not surprised, and we certainly don’t judge, the officers who use “gallows humor” as a means of coping with a traumatic calls they responded to. We’re grateful for the men and women who have devoted their lives to keeping the peace. But here’s the question: what will the public think when they see an officer posting a dark joke about a call they just responded to or a joke related to COVID-19 when people are suffering?

In this two-hour webinar, you’ll learn why dark jokes, or gallows humor, when shared on your personal social accounts, can hurt both your career and your agency’s reputation. This webinar will also explore the following topics:

• Public employees’ freedom of speech rights in the age of social media
• Why crude humor expressed on a personal social media account can still violate conduct standards
• The critical role of communicating and reviewing social media policies to the rank-and-file TODAY