Prison Guard Can Fly Nazi Flag, Arbiter Rules

A prison guard who flew a Nazi flag on his front porch can’t be fired, even if his beliefs “represent the most despicable tendencies of mankind,” a state arbiter said in a ruling announced Tuesday.

Officer Edward Kuhnel was ordered reinstated with full back pay, dating to his suspension last December when a newspaper published a photo of the Nazi flag flying outside his home.

Arbiter Robert Simmelkjaer found no basis for the suspension because corrections officials could not prove their contention that the publicized display of racism could lead to prison disturbances or personnel problems.

In his decision, made last Friday but announced Tuesday, the arbiter said Kuhner “cannot be disciplined for these beliefs even though they represent the most despicable tendencies of mankind, responsible for the Holocaust during the regime of Nazi Germany.”