DENVER — The professor who once likened Sept. 11 victims to Nazis and stood accused of committing “serious research misconduct” will not get his job back at the University of Colorado.

The Colorado Supreme Court upheld a lower court decision which ruled CU was within its rights to terminate Ward Churchill’s employment at the school. CU fired Churchill in 2007 after an essay he penned describing victims of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks as “little Eichmanns,” likened the individuals to Nazi leader Adolf Eichmann.

A probe into Churchill’s work after the comment revealed the former professor had committed “serious research misconduct”, including falsification, fabrication and plagiarism, according to the university.

The Denver District Court, which issued the initial ruling, said that CU was entitled to “quasi-judicial immunity” in its firing of Churchill. This voided Churchill’s claims that his First Amendment rights had been violated when he was let go. Churchill was suing the university for wrongful termination, arguing that his position should be reinstated.

Following the decision, Churchill attorney David Lane told the Associated Press he will appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.