Your comments: Morris County faces lawsuit from officer who refused to fire gun while pregnant Staff By Staff The Star-Ledger
on July 13, 2010 at 3:43 PM, updated July 13, 2010 at 4:00 PM

A Morris County Sheriff’s officer was denied a request to be exempted from a firearms proficiency test out of fear that the shooting would impact her pregnancy, according to a report in the Daily Record.

Instead, Sgt. Moire Reilly was put on 60 days of alternate duty, meaning her job was limited and she could no longer carry a gun. When she requested an extension of alternate duty, she was denied and subsequently filed suit against the county. community members are reacting to the news:

From JerseyCityGirl:

"She was not allowed to continue wit the alternative duty, she asked to continue the alternate duty so that she would not have to use her gun, and was denied. That is the basis of the law suit. If a male officer was undergoing chemo, or some other medical condition that may have made firing a gun hazardous, and asked for alternate duty, would we be saying he was in the wrong line of work? Pregnancy is a medical condition, normal and natural, but still medical, and there is nothing wrong with modifying your work for the nine months you are pregnant. It does not mean you are weak or underqualified. It means you recognize the commitment your vocation requires, and want to be able to function at maximum capacity. So a woman who chooses a physically demanding vocation should forgo having a family? We have no respect for mothers, or police officers, if that is the consensus." member politburo had a different take:

"The real question is whether there is a good reason to refuse to fire the gun. I'd imagine the expectant mother was concerned about lead exposure. But, no, if you click through to the article, it was 'because she feared the noise or recoil might harm the fetus.'

"I agree with what you've written, but it doesn't appear to apply to this case. She still has her job. She was also offered a different job after the 60-day period expired, but refused it.

"If Reilly's claim that other officers were treated differently is true, then it's another story altogether."

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