Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita says Governor Mike Braun’s administration has failed to act on his office’s referrals of 25 educators over social media posts about Charlie Kirk’s killing.
Rokita wants Braun to direct the Indiana Department of Education to consider disciplinary action against the educators’ teaching licenses. He says his office sent the referrals more than a year ago and has repeatedly asked the state to review them.
In a post on X Monday night, Rokita pointed to Braun’s September 2025 warning that teachers who celebrated or excused political violence could lose their licenses. He also cited Braun’s support for Turning Point USA, the organization Kirk founded, and asked the governor to follow through on his earlier statements.
Rokita included screenshots of Facebook posts by two educators, Brett Maurer and Ashley Russell. He identified them as examples of teachers who still have active licenses.
The dispute also raises questions about teachers’ free-speech rights. The Indiana State Teachers Association condemned political violence after Kirk’s death but warned that punishing teachers for lawful speech could discourage them from speaking freely. The ACLU of Indiana also raised concerns about the effect on educators’ First Amendment rights.
Braun said the state would review teachers’ comments after Kirk was killed on Sept. 10, 2025. But the Indiana Office of Administrative Law Proceedings told the Indiana Capital Chronicle in March that no teacher licensing cases related to Kirk’s death had been filed.
