Michigan Assistant Attorney General
Andrew Shirvell on Friday is expected to face a disciplinary hearing
as he returns to work over claims he harassed a gay student, the AP
reported.
Shirvell, 30, is accused of tormenting
Chris Armstrong, the openly gay president of the Michigan Student
Assembly at the University of Michigan.
Shirvell attacked Armstrong on the
Internet, at his home and at university events. At
his now private blog Chris Armstrong Watch, the official
accused the student of preying on impressionable freshman, of being
“Satan's representative on the student assembly,” and labeled
Armstrong a Nazi, a racist, a liar and an elitist.
The case attracted nationwide attention
when Shirvell
appeared on CNN's Anderson
Cooper 360
defending his right to campaign against Armstrong's “radical
homosexual agenda.”
The appearance led to a loud outcry
against Shirvell, who decided to take a month-long leave from the
attorney general's office. His boss, Attorney General Mike Cox, at
first defended Shirvell's actions as free speech, but later reversed
himself. Cox will decide Shirvell's fate.
Last week, Armstrong
filed a complaint with the Michigan Attorney Grievance Commission,
which claims the attorney violated the profession's code of conduct.
The complaint asks for an investigation, discipline and possible
disbarment.