Library Aide Fired For Reporting Child Pornography Suspect
Brenda Biesterfeld worked as a library aide in Lindsay, California. Biesterfeld is a single mom to two kids who says she is now unemployed because she did what most people would consider the right, and only, thing to do.
Biesterfeld was working at the library on February 28 when she noticed a man in the library using a computer to view child pornography. Donny Lynn Chrisler was reportedly staring at images of naked boys on the computer screen when Biesterfeld noticed and called her supervisor. The supervisor, Judi Hill, instructed Biesterfeld to hand Chrisler, who is deaf and a diagnosed schizophrenic, a note demanding that he stop. Biesterfeld says that she told Hill that she thought she should call the police, but Hill told her not to get the police involved and just to hand him the note.
After thinking it over that night, Biesterfeld decided that it would be morally wrong not to report the incident to the police. The Los Angeles times reported that during her lunch hour that day, she went next door to the police station and reported what happened at the library the day before. She was instructed by the police to immediately call them if she noticed anyone viewing child pornography at the library again.
It didn't take long for Chrisler to come back to the library. On March 4, Biesterfeld again observed him viewing what appeared to be child pornography on the computer screen. She called the police and they arrested Chrisler and seized the library computer as evidence. According to Biesterfeld's lawyers, when Hill learned about the arrest and confiscation of the computer, she was furious and called police to complain that they had violated Chrisler's "privacy rights."
On March 6 Biesterfeld was fired from the library for unacceptable performance, despite having a favorable performance review just six weeks earlier. The county says that the reason she was fired had nothing to do with her calling the police despite Hill's objections. County officials say that there is no policy that prevents librarians from reporting child pornography and that a look at Biesterfeld's personnel file reveals the true reason that she was fired. However, that information is confidential and privacy laws prevent the county from publicly disclosing the reason that they say she was fired.
After Biesterfeld was fired, her supporters held a prayer vigil outside the library and an organization promoting "family-friendly" libraries honored her in front of the Lindsay City Council. The City Council wrote an angry letter to the county with vague threats of the town breaking off from the county library system, and lawyers with a conservative legal group based at Jerry Falwell's Liberty University are now representing Biesterfeld and threatening to file a lawsuit against the county. There is also talk about the local firefighters donating some of the money they receive from an upcoming fundraiser to Biesterfeld.
The community is rallying behind Biesterfeld and many are furious that the library was more concerned about Chrisler's privacy than the protection of children. Library acceptable use policies for computers vary, however child pornography is a crime everywhere.
Chrisler's lawyer contends that his client has done nothing wrong, although police reportedly found explicit images of young boys at his home.
