<p>NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A Tennessee police department fired an officer last fall after video surfaced of him high-fiving a man who used a racial slur. </p>
<p>According to <a href="https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/local/williamson/franklin/2021/04/28/franklin-tennessee-police-officer-fired-high-fiving-man-who-used-racial-slur/7387586002/">The Tennessean</a>, the Franklin Police Department’s November firing of Seth Schilling was confirmed by documents obtained through a public records request. </p>
<p>The documents say Schilling responded in October to a call at a bar about a man harassing customers, filming them and using racial and homophobic slurs. </p>
<p>The documents say a group of men was in the parking lot. One said the racial slur, followed by "See! First Amendment! First Amendment!” The man said he was a Donald Trump supporter, and Schilling said he supported the former president as well, documents say.</p>
<p>After the man said the racial slur, Schilling smiled and high-fived him, the documents show.</p>
<p>The man accused of harassing customers was not in that group, but Schilling found him and arrested him on public intoxication and disorderly conduct charges later, the documents show.</p>
<p>A video was posted on social media and has since been deleted, along with the account that posted it.</p>
<p>Schilling initially said during an administrative interview that he high-fived the man for being a Trump supporter, then after reviewing the video, he said the high-five was for the freedom of speech comment, documents show. He also said he didn’t know there was video footage of the encounter.</p>
<p>According to a transcript of an internal affairs hearing, he also said he instinctively "went for it" when the man put his hand up, since drunk people often ask for high-fives or handshakes. He said it wasn’t for the slur.</p>
<p>“The conversation was getting a little weird and it was honestly just trying to keep the situation calm,” he said, according to the transcript.</p>
<p>Additionally, at the hearing, Schilling said he had become numb to slurs because inmates frequently said them when he worked as a correctional officer.</p>
<p>Human resources director Kevin Townsel said Schilling participated in a “grotesque conversation” and didn’t condemn the slur, saying further that the man could’ve overpowered Schilling and taken his gun during the high-five.</p>
<p>A review of Chief Deborah Faulkner’s decision to fire Schilling found that he showed no remorse for high-fiving the man.</p>
<p>Faulkner said Schilling was not involved in any other incidents of racial discrimination or bias. A performance review by Schilling’s boss found the officer, who was hired in 2019, didn’t “always make sound, accurate (and) timely decisions.”</p>
