Hogan fires staffer after social media posts praising alleged Kenosha protest shooter
Kyle Rittenhouse
ANNAPOLIS, Md. - A staffer for Gov. Larry Hogan (R-Md.) lost his job Saturday after controversial social media posts praising the rifle-wielding teenager accused of shooting three people, killing two, during policy brutality protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Arthur (Mac) Love IV had been deputy director of the Governor’s Office of Community Initiatives according to the non-profit news website Maryland Matters, which first reported Love's firing Saturday.
Love drew the ire of black Maryland lawmakers and others after he posted memes to Facebook with incendiary messages including, among other statements, "don't be a thug if you can't take a slug."
“These divisive images and statements are inconsistent with the mission and core values of the Office of Community Initiatives," Steve McAdams, executive director for the Government's Office of Community Initiatives, said in a statement.
“These posts are obviously totally inappropriate," Shareese Churchill, a spokeswoman for Gov. Hogan, said in a statement. "We fully support the immediate actions taken by Director McAdams to address this matter.”
Rittenhouse, 17, traveled from his home in northern Illinois in response to the protests following the Kenosha police shooting of Jacob Blake.
Prosecutors say Rittenhouse opened fire on three protesters and killed two Tuesday night.
Shocking viral video showed the shootings. Rittenhouse now faces homicide charges.
Public records showed Maryland taxpayers paid Love a $76,000 salary last year.