STUART – The Martin County School District has recently toyed with the idea of limiting First Amendment rights for educators in the area of free speech after the sudden shooting death of Charlie Kick resulted in a plethora of online comments about the nature of his right-wing political activism conducted through Turning Point USA that he founded in 2012.
Kirk was killed by a single bullet wound to the neck last Sept. 10 while debating with students at Utah Valley University over the issue of mass shootings. A rising star and top fundraiser in the far-right Republic camp, Kirk had the backing of many churches and those of the Christian faith because of the conservative family values he expressed as he visited college campuses to recruit young adults for the Republican Party.
The day after Kirk’s death, Florida Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas notified all Florida school district superintendents to clamp down on any teachers’ online comments in the aftermath, which began to bubble up almost immediately.
Kamoutsas himself vowed to hold teachers accountable for making “disgusting comments about the horrific assassination of Charlie Kirk” and insisted he had the power “to discipline educators and sanction their certificates for probable cause.”
Soon, along with a number of teachers across the state, Spectrum Academy Teacher Matthew Theobald found himself in hot water for comments he made in a Facebook post to his mother just two days after Kirk died in an attempt to explain who he was to her. The School District removed him from the classroom on Sept. 12 and suspended the 17-year teacher and president of the Martin County Education Association on Sept. 26 without pay.
Superintendent Michael Maine subsequently recommended termination.
Realizing the deck was stacked against him, Theobald hired attorney Martin Powell to formally request a hearing before the Department of Administrative Hearings in Tallahassee rather than take his chances with a simple School Board vote.
While Martin County School Board members are elected on a non-partisan basis, two of them – Chairwoman Amy Pritchitt and District 5 Board Member Brian Moriarty – attended a Stuart Charlie Kirk Vigil on Sept. 15 and subsequently posted comments on the organizer’s Facebook page.
In addition, Chairwoman Pritchitt is the co-chair of the local chapter of Moms for Liberty, a conservative group closely aligned with the Republic Party.
Before Pritchitt could launch the Oct. 21 hearing on Theobald’s request, nearly three dozen members of the public addressed the Board, with the vast majority calling for the beloved teacher’s reinstatement. The first speaker, Martin County High School student Yoel Reyes, got repeated outbursts of applause.
“For those of you who would like to see Mr. Theobald removed, I was a student of his,” he said. “He was a phenomenal man, very honorable and a great teacher as well. I don’t believe you’re trying to remove him because of his comments on the late Charlie Kirk from a private conversation. I don’t know how you obtained those comments, but it doesn’t seem right. I believe you are trying to remove him because he was not afraid to question what you were doing and stood up for the teachers.”
Ashley Braden Knowles came to the podium toting a baby in a sling.
“I check all the boxes for the family value ideals,” she said. “I just want you to know there are moderates and conservatives who are unhappy with what this Board is doing. My history teachers at Martin County High School taught me that disagreeing was my American right. Our current Martin County School Board is teaching that right is only reserved for those with certain opinions or in the private sector out of their reach.”
Theobald’s wife, Kalyn Rowell, was the next to speak between sobs.
“I believe your decision for termination is a targeted attack to undermine the teachers’ union, and in doing so, you decided to financially cripple a teacher with a young family,” she said of the District’s decision to suspend him without pay. “Your actions have caused irreparable harm to myself, to Matt and our 16-month old son. This was a blatant, sad attempt to tarnish a good man’s name from one of your District employees who decided to stalk Matt’s mother’s Facebook page and cut and paste comments in a private conversation and blast it all over social media.”
Rowell was followed at the podium by Elizabeth Crane, who quoted from Theobald’s post.
“Matt Theobald’s First Amendment rights are still intact,” she said. “You are free to say whatever you want [but] you are not free to call people racists, misogynistics. For those of us who loved him [Kirk] and were traumatized by this, that was a very inconsiderate, harmful thing to do to the public.”
Long-time Martin County resident James Grosnickle insisted the Board had already found him guilty.
“How you could weaponize a school district to intimidate teachers and a union is beyond belief,” he said. “If a police officer is in a shooting, he’s put on administrative leave with pay. When you suspend without pay, you’ve shown the prejudice right there. You’ve already made up your minds.”
Powell, Theobald’s attorney, addressed School Board members next, urging them and Superintendent Maine to grant his client’s request for the state hearing and avoid “long and expensive litigation.”
“Take yourself out of the situation where you’re going to sit in judgement of someone based on what they said because you don’t agree,” he said. “Give it to someone who has the ability to actually decide whether people have a right to have [and] express opinions.”
While Dorothy Craft subsequently urged the Board to fire the social studies teacher for his “inflammatory, vile words,” retired 19th Judicial Circuit Court Judge Bob Makemsom advised its members to tread carefully around the First Amendment.
“My position is that even hate speech should be completely and totally allowed in our country,” Makemsom said as he actually quoted the founder of Turning Point USA. “I think in a civil society, the best ideas will win as long as you have that marketplace. That was Charlie Kirk. Ask yourselves, what would Charlie Kirk think about the effort to terminate Matt Theobald for his comment. If you are honest with yourselves and the residents of Martin County, I think you know the answer.”
Mari Jo Theobald, the teacher’s mother, spoke next.
“This whole situation started when Internet trolls copied a private post from my page and spread it around the Internet, taking it out of context and twisting the words to suit their purpose,” she said. “Unfortunately, the School Board jumped on the wagon and released Matt’s name, along with this information to the press. They did so with not even a conversation with Matt and I about the premise of the post. It was not unlike comments the Chairman of this School Board makes on her posts, where she speaks her dislike to people who don’t agree with her Moms for Liberty views.”
She also defended her son’s wording.
“All opinions expressed in that post describing Charlie Kirk’s character can be substantiated by video clips of his own words,” she insisted. “The comment comparing Turning Point USA to Hitler’s youth can also be substantiated if you bother to fact-check the statements rather than sow fear.”
After many more citizens urged the Board to reinstate her son, School Board Attorney Anthony George told its members they could either choose to grant Matt Theobald’s request to be heard before the DOAH or formally judge his case theirselves within 60 days of the Oct. 8 request, which would be no later than Dec. 8. District 1 Board Member Christia Li Roberts immediately expressed concerns that the Department of Education and Kamoutsas might undercut any decision they might make.
“I think that creates a problem,” she said. “I think it’s more prudent to have it heard by the Department of Administrative Hearings by a judge who’s versed in exactly what the issue is, who can interpret what that professonal standards language is and deal with it that way.”
Vice-Chairwoman Marsha Powers did not agree.
“I think this doesn’t necessarily tie to the actions of DOE,” she said. “Terminations happen in school districts without a loss of licensing. One does not necessarily impact the other. I think we should maintain our local control. Mr. Theobald is an employee of the Martin County School Board, and I feel like this should be heard in the community that we represent.”
When no other Board members had comments, Powers made a motion to deny Theobald’s request, which was seconded by Board Member Moriarty and failed 2-3, with Chairwoman Pritchitt and Board Members Roberts and Russell dissenting. Roberts then made a motion to approve the hearing before the DOAH, which was seconded by Russell and passed 3-2, with Board Member Moriarty and Vice-Chairwoman Powers dissenting.