Rokita advocates the removal of teachers who 'express support for political violence'

INDIANAPOLIS -- Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita has weighed in on the ongoing controversy surrounding Charlie Kirk, telling schools to discipline or fire teachers who make negative comments about his death.




Rokita sent a letter offering legal guidance to school superintendents and public university administrators throughout the Hoosier State on Tuesday as mixed reactions continue to be shared on social media in the aftermath of Kirk's fatal shooting on Sept. 10.

Following Suzanne Swierc's wrongful termination lawsuit, Rokita said his office will continue to analyze the "hundreds" of complaints that it has received regarding "troubling comments made by educators on social media."




Ball State University terminated Swierc's employment as the university's former director of health promotion and advocacy following a post she made on her Facebook page related to Kirk's death.




At the time, Rokita said Swierc's dismissal was one of the first submissions posted to his Eyes on Education portal, saying he hoped her "vile comments were worth it."




The lawsuit claims Swierc's firing was unconstitutional since it was "clearly an opinion on a controversial subject" that was posted on her personal social media page.




Rokita has issued his response, claiming that schools assume "substantial authority" to remove or discipline teachers who make "divisive or controversial speech."




"As a matter of good government and sound public policy, schools would be wise to remove from the classroom teachers who express support for or attempt to excuse political violence," Rokita said. "And as a matter of morality, this moment demands decisive action from public officials to address noxious speech from government employees that undermines public confidence in our schools and corrodes public discourse."




Rokita added that educators can exercise First Amendment rights, but those rights are not "unlimited" when it comes to government employment. He added that public employers assume the power to regulate the speech made by government employees when it reportedly "disrupts government operations."




An employee at the Indiana Department of Child Services was also fired for posting her thoughts on Kirk's death.




Critics have pointed out that Rokita and other Republican voices have drummed up support for Kirk and the Conservative movement in the aftermath of his shooting death while remaining tight-lipped when former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband were gunned down in June in what was deemed a "politically motivated assassination."








FOX59/CBS4 previously spoke with IU Maurer Law School Professor Steve Sanders, who said speech deemed objectionable is typically tolerated unless it can be proven to have a "disruptive or burdensome impact" on the employer.




"If a government employee speaks on a matter of public concern, and the Charlie Kirk assassination clearly is that, then their employer must show that that speech has a disruptive or burdensome impact on their workplace. But what's important to know is that it can't be just speculative, 'Well, some people here in the workplace are gonna be upset about it.' It can't just be that people will be upset. An employer can fire or discipline a public employee if they can demonstrate to a court that the employee's speech is unduly damaging, burdensome or disruptive to the employer's workplace and interest."




Indiana Gov. Mike Braun has also expressed his thoughts, stating that the Secretary of Education can suspend or revoke a teacher's license for misconduct.




"The office will review reported statements of K-12 teachers and administrators who have made statements to celebrate or incite political violence."





via: https://fox59.com/news/rokita-advocates-the-removal-of-teachers-who-express-support-for-political-violence/