There has to be more to the story. I can't believe he would not be able to sue and clean up after this.
twitchy.com
It seems the Guardian was the one who traced the e-mails back to the donators.
This is acceptable....why ?
The lieutenant did something both foolish and knowingly against what was clearly stated city and department policy. By using his city email to send his message, it gives the appearance of having the 'official' blessing of the Norfolk, VA police department, which clearly did not approve it.
I also have a work email, and everyone at work knows that the email is for official business ONLY. In addition, everyone at work knows that your outgoing and incoming emails are not private and can be viewed by supervisors and security. The fact that the email address is for police and government employees makes the transgression worse than it would otherwise be for business employees.