A North Carolina teen painted a tribute to Charlie Kirk on her school’s “spirit rock,” and was promptly censored, according to Alliance Defending Freedom.  

Now, Gabby Stout and her parents are suing the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education for violating the student’s First Amendment rights.  

“[School officials] have unconstitutionally censored [Stout’s] speech that the First Amendment protects, retaliated against her for exercising her First Amendment rights,” the lawsuit states.  

After the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk on Sept. 10, Stout, a junior at Ardrey Kell High School in Charlotte, North Carolina, wanted to do something to honor the life of the conservative Christian leader.  

“I admired his boldness in sharing and defending his Christian faith. I wanted to remind my classmates and community that Charlie was enjoying eternal life with his Savior, Jesus Christ,” Stout told The Daily Signal.  

Stout called the school a few days after Kirk’s assassination and asked for permission to paint the campus “spirit rock,” which she and seen painted in the past with messages supporting a particular NFL team, or even Black Lives Matter.  

According to Alliance Defending Freedom, the Christian legal group representing Stout, the school office told Stout on Sept. 12 that she had permission to paint the rock as long as the message did not contain profanity, a political message, or any vulgarity.  

“Gabby [Stout] had told the school official that she was thinking of painting ‘something USA themed’ as well as ‘something for Charlie Kirk, who recently passed.’ The school official said, ‘That would be very nice,’” according to ADF senior counsel Travis Barham.  

Stout, her parents, and two other students painted the large rock with the words “Freedom 1776” and “Live Like Kirk—John 11:25.” 

“It was important to me to share my faith and to create a space where students could memorialize Charlie,” Stout recalled.  

Hours later, Stout learned on social media that the school had ordered the “Live Like Kirk—John 11:25” message to be painted over.  

The following day, a schoolwide email accused Stout of “vandalism” and informed the student body that law enforcement was conducting an investigation, according to ADF. The investigation included Stout being called out of class to write a statement detailing her actions. ADF reports that officials “forced her to show them her phone logs.”  

“When they pulled me out of class, I felt scared and targeted,” Stout said. “They were punishing me for simply expressing my faith and my love for my country.” 

According to ADF, the school officials did not obtain permission from Stout’s parents to go through the student’s phone, “nor did they inform the students or parents about their constitutional right to remain silent and contact an attorney during a criminal investigation.”  

A few days later, the school issued a Spirit Rock Speech Code stating that only messages of “positive school spirit” that â€œuphold the inclusive values of our school community” are allowed on the rock.  

“When the officials formally concluded that the student, her parents, and her friends had not committed vandalism, they quietly closed the investigation with no apology and then released a statement saying they never accused or investigated her of anything,” according to ADF.  

The lawsuit claims school officials â€œunconstitutionally censored” Stout’s protected free speech and â€œretaliated against” the student for expressing her First Amendment rights. 

“We do not comment on active litigation,” Sheri Costa, director of board communications for the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education, told The Daily Signal when asked about the lawsuit.  

The suit has been filed with the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina. 

“I’m taking a stand because I want to glorify God, and I don’t want other students to be punished for expressing their faith as I did,” Stout said. “Every student should feel safe sharing his or her beliefs without being shamed by school officials.” 

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