Two US police officers have been fired over a Facebook post suggesting congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez should be shot.
The police department said one of the officers wrote the post on Facebook while the other 'liked' it.
According to The Times-Picayune of New Orleans, Charlie Rispoli's Facebook post linked to an article about Ms Ocasio-Cortez.
The officer himself wrote: "This vile idiot needs a round... and I don't mean the kind she used to serve."
He was referring to the New York representatives time working as a bartender before she was elected to Congress last year.
During a news conference, Gretna Police Chief Arthur Lawson confirmed an internal investigation had been launched into the post.
He confirmed that Mr Rispoli had been fired, as well as the other officer who had liked the post.
Mr Lawson stated: "Both of these officers we consider have violated our policies regarding social media - we have a zero tolerance policy.
"This incident, we feel, has been an embarrassment to our department.
"These officers have certainly acted in a manner which was unprofessional, alluding to a violent act to be conducted against a sitting US Congresswoman... a member of our government. We're not going to tolerate that."
He noted that his department had received "numerous calls" about the incident from the media and members of the public, and suggested they've now done their due diligence.
He added that the force will move forward, and officers have been trained to make them aware of police policies.
It comes after Ms Ocasio-Cortez was targeted in social media attacks by the US president.
The Democratic congresswoman responded to the Louisiana incident by suggesting Donald Trump is "sowing violence".
This is Trump’s goal when he uses targeted language & threatens elected officials who don’t agree w/ his political agenda. It’s authoritarian behavior.
The President is sowing violence. He’s creating an environment where people can get hurt & he claims plausible deniability. https://t.co/GuYKPGzSLm— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) July 22, 2019
Mr Trump earlier this month claimed the progressive Congresswoman and three of her colleagues should "go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came" - despite all four being American citizens.
The tweets and subsequent public attacks by the president led to widespread condemnation, with the House of Representatives voting to condemn Mr Trump for "racist comments".
