A trial began Tuesday for two firefighters and police officer trying to get their jobs back after they were fired for re-enacting the dragging death of James Byrd in a parade in 1998. The men, who were off-duty at the time, are suing the city for reinstatement and lost wages, claiming their First Amendment rights to free speech were violated.
Former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, who publicly criticized the men and said they should be fired, will take the stand to defend the dismissals. The men are being represented by the New York Civil Liberties Union, and Reverend Al Sharpton may testify on their behalf.
Police officer Joseph Locurto and firefighters Jonathan Walters and Robert Steiner were among a group that wore blackface and large, black wigs and ate watermelon and threw it into the crowd at a Labor Day Parade in Broad Channel, Queens, in 1998. They were competing for the
