Weber State Professor Accused Of Inciting Violence On Social Media

SALT LAKE CITY — A Weber State University professor is under investigation for some of his posts on social media which many people complained incited violence.

For the University, it’s a balance of an employee — a criminal justice professor exercising his free speech, versus comments that many people say were hurtful.

“We know sometimes the comments that are said under the guise of freedom of speech can be very hurtful and can be very upsetting to our students, our faculty, our staff, and can make them feel insecure and unsafe. And that’s why we take these so seriously,” said Allison Hess, director of public relations at Weber State University.

Here are just a few of Scott Senjo’s Tweets that have drawn the attention of University officials.

When Salt Lake Mayor Erin Mendenhall announced a curfew in the wake of Saturday’s peaceful protest turning violent, Senjo posted, “See what you get for pandering to those disgusting losers? They’re not homeless Erin. You got what you deserve, idiot. You arrest them. Arrest.”

In another post, a woman raised the question if a female protester would have been shot for resisting arrest if she was black, to which Senjo replied, “if the woman who got arrested in that park was black, and got shot, gosh maybe she should’ve avoided the park. Duh.”

He also responded to a post about a man who got shot in the eye by police with a rubber bullet during a protest.

“Tell the story right now. “I was an idiot and joined rioters and looters in a fight with cops,” Senjo posted. 

University officials said they’ve received a number of complaints about Senjo — which they’re taking seriously.

“We are going to reach out proactively to our students, faculty, staff, to ensure that they feel safe and comfortable, and that they understand that the university is looking at this very carefully,” said Hess.

When asked if Senjo could be fired over his behavior, Hess repeated that they’re taking it very seriously — promising that all measures that are appropriate would be taken to insure the safety of the campus community.

KSL reached out to Professor Senjo about his posts and the investigation, but he did not respond to our request for comment.