High school English teacher Melisa Crook is suing the Creston Community School District and several district leaders for taking action against her for a comment she posted after Charlie Kirk's death.
Crook is claiming the district violated her free speech rights and is pointing to past pro-Republican posts made by Superintendent Deron Stender and School Board President Don Gee.
Crook is on administrative leave and is facing termination.
The federal lawsuit says Crook posted the comment while at home, on her personal account and outside of school hours. It argues Crook's comments were made as a private citizen, not as an employee of the district.
The filing asserts the reasons outlined for terminating Crook's contract are "contrary to the vague and overbroad policies adopted and applied" by the school board.
Crook is asking the federal court to block administrators from taking further action to remove her from her job. She's also asking for punitive damages for the violation of her First Amendment rights.
Crook's comment
The day conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated, Crook commented on a family member's post, "He is a terrible human being…terrible. I do not wish death on anyone, but him not being here is a blessing."
The lawsuit alleges later that evening, the conservative blog The Iowa Standard posted about Crook's comment and identified her by name as a teacher at Creston.
The next morning, Crook posted an apology, clarifying she does not condone violence.
"I did not think he should be killed. After further review, I should have thought more about how I chose to post my thoughts, how it would sound,” the post stated according to the lawsuit. “I take responsibility for the poor wording of my post."
The lawsuit states Stender placed Crook on administrative leave pending an investigation. According to the filing, Stender met with Crook a few days later and said her comment had resulted in more than 111 emails and 140 calls.
The investigation also stated her comment resulted in needing an increased law enforcement presence at the school, although the lawsuit casts doubt on whether that was necessary.
The superintendent issued Crook a notice of recommendation to terminate her contract and delivered it to the board at a special meeting on Sept. 30. The lawsuit asserts the reasons outlined in the notice were related to her post.
Pro-GOP posts from administrators
The lawsuit also attempts to turn the district’s response back against statements made online by district leaders.
It highlights posts shared by the superintendent, including a repost that says "Israel doesn't occupy the land. They OWN it."
It includes posts in support of President Donald Trump, Sen. Joni Ernst, Elon Musk and other GOP political figures. It also includes a comment calling former Rep. Liz Cheney a "snake" and a post agreeing with a clip posted by Charlie Kirk.
The filing contains a screenshot of a tweet from Stender in 2020 attached to a repost from Fox News stating former President Joe Biden's lead was narrowing over Trump.
"Get your boots on. Will be lots of water when the snowflakes melt on Tuesday night," the post said.
The lawsuit asserts the superintendent publicly apologized for those comments and "defended his right to engage in personal political speech." The filing states there is no indication the superintendent has ever been investigated or placed on leave for the posts.
When asked for comment by IPR News, Stender said he is not able to discuss personnel matters.
