LANSING, Mich. — Lansing Firefighter and Black activist, Michael Lynn Jr., is facing a disciplinary hearing for posting Lansing Police Chief Daryl Green's cell phone number on his Facebook Page.
Lynn admits he did it. He also says he did nothing wrong.
“This is retaliation that I have been going through for years now,” Lynn said. “They use their AOGs or operating guidelines to dig deep into books and find rules and regulations that really villainize my advocacy and my activism.”
Last month, Lynn called out the Lansing Police Department on Facebook page after the department made a post about a police dog who was killed in 1999.
Lynn felt the post was insensitive because it did not mention Aldric McKinstry Jr., a Black teen who died at the hands of Lansing police that same night.
In his post, Lynn shared Green’s departmental cell phone number and encouraged people to call him about the situation.
“It’s a public phone number,” Lynn said. “It’s a number that everybody should be able to have. It shouldn’t be nothing that they should be hiding or keeping in secret.”
In the three-page disciplinary document, officials with the city and fire department accused Lynn of jeopardizing the safety of Lansing police by encouraging residents to call Green on a controversial topic.
Since the post was made, Green has had to change number, officials said in the document.
Officials with both the Lansing fire and police departments declined to comment on the situation because it's an ongoing internal disciplinary process.
Lynn has been at the center of another city controversy since First Ward City Councilman Brandon Betz sent him profane and mocking text messages. Betz has since been censured and stripped of his committee assignments by other members of the City Council.
Lynn has hired an attorney for the disciplinary hearing and said he will continue to fight, because he feels he hasn't done anything wrong.
“I’m being talked to like I am a terrorist and being put in a tough situation for holding city officials accountable,” Lynn said.
Lynn’s disciplinary hearing is scheduled for Friday. If misconduct is proven by the city, he can be fired from the Lansing Fire Department.
