PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — A former high school principal in Boca Raton was fired this week after comments he reportedly emailed to a parent about the Holocaust.
The Palm Beach County School Board voted to terminate William Latson during a Wednesday meeting. His termination is effective Nov. 21, according to the board's agenda.
Back in April 2018, the Spanish River High School principal told a parent that he couldn't say the Holocaust was "a factual, historical event." The mother's original inquiry was about making sure that Holocaust education was "a priority," the Palm Beach Post reported.
Latson also reportedly added to his email, "not everyone believes the Holocaust happened."
RELATED: Florida principal apologizes after refusing to call the Holocaust 'a factual, historical event'
Latson was reassigned and apologized in July.
"I regret that the verbiage that I used when responding to an email message from a parent, one year ago, did not accurately reflect my professional and personal commitment to educating all students about the atrocities of the Holocaust," Latson said in a statement to The Post.
The Post said the termination was the first time in years that the board voted to fire a principal. The case is also not over, as Latson's attorney has plans to appeal the decision.
Until Nov. 21, Latson is suspected without pay.
The Holocaust was state-sponsored persecution during World War II when six million Jews were murdered by the Nazi regime. "Holocaust" is Greek for "sacrifice by fire."
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum said when the Nazis came to power in 1933 in Germany, they believed Jews were "inferior" and considered them a threat to the country's culture. To this day, there is no single document created by Nazi leaders that details exactly how many people were killed in the Holocaust or during World War II.
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