112 ANNUAL REPORT 2017 employee described the chief executive of the municipality where he worked as, among other things, ‘a person whose greatest core competence may not be truthfulness’. The municipality subsequently gave the employee a warning. In the Ombudsman’s opinion the employee’s remark about the chief executive was unreasonably offensive and overstepped the limits to his freedom of expression. In this connection, the Ombudsman gave weight to the facts that the remark concerned the chief executive as a person and that it must be understood as an accusation against the chief executive of telling untruths to a not insignificant extent. The Ombudsman found that such an accusation – if not documented or rendered probable – was to be regarded as very offensive. However, the Ombudsman found it very unfortunate that – at least until the Ombudsman asked for a statement on the matter – the municipality appeared to have considered the case solely as a matter of whether the remarks posted by the employee were loyal to the municipality, and not whether his remarks overstepped the express limits to public employees’ freedom of expression. In the Ombudsman’s opinion the way in which the municipality had handled the case could leave doubts as to whether it had considered the case on the basis of a correct understanding of applicable law. In addition, the Ombudsman disagreed with the municipality that the fact that the employee had not made it clear that his remarks on Facebook were made in a private capacity was of any significance. The Ombudsman found that it would be most appropriate if the municipality was given the opportunity to consider – on a correct legal basis – whether the warning should be upheld and, if so, its specific wording. On that basis, he recommended that the municipality reconsider the case. 2017-9. Significant errors in relation to use of door alarms in municipal residential facility Following a monitoring visit to a municipal residential facility, the Ombudsman opened three cases concerning the installation of door alarms at the housing units of three residents with impaired mental functioning. The objective of the alarms was to warn staff if the residents, whose behaviour caused problems, left their housing units – thus making it possible to prevent injury to the residents themselves or others.