Note: Offensive term in third paragraph. Read with discretion.

A Kansas appeals court attorney has been fired after using offensive language in a tweet about the state’s former attorney general.

Sarah Peterson Herr was a research attorney for a Kansas Court of Appeals judge. She posted her comments about former Attorney General Phill Kline to Twitter last week while Kline was appearing before the state Supreme Court as part of an ethics investigation.

Herr commented on Kline’s facial expression, saying “Why is Phil Klein (sic) smiling? There is nothing to smile about, douchebag.”

Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Lawton Nuss said Monday that Herr had been fired and her case was referred to other offices for possible ethical violations.

Herr has apologized and said she didn’t realize her posts were readable by all Twitter readers.

Original

A Kansas Court of Appeals research attorney has been fired after an investigation into comments she posted to Twitter last week during the ethics hearing of former Attorney General Phill Kline.

Sarah Peterson Herr was a research attorney for Court of Appeals Judge Christel Marquardt. Herr tweeted several negative comments about Kline during the hearing.

Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Lawton Nuss said Monday that Herr had been fired and that her case had been referred to other offices for possible ethical violations.

She was suspended with pay on Friday, the same day she apologized because she said the public tweets may have reflected badly on the state’s court system. Herr said she failed to realize her posts were readable by all Twitter readers.