Lawyer weighs in on Indiana AG's request for submissions on people celebrating Charlie Kirk's death

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Carolyn Iodice, a lawyer with free speech non-profit "Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression", or FIRE, spoke with ABC57 Tuesday to discuss a recent post made to "X" by Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita.

Rokita's post asks for members of the public to report educators in the Hoosier state who appear to celebrate the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk on social media.

The post encourages people to submit evidence to the state's "Eyes on Education" Portal. Rokita writes this is an effort to "Expose hate, protect students and empower parents across Indiana."

Iodice said public employees have a right to comment on matters of public concern, and the government can only discipline or discharge them if there's evidence their comments have caused significant disruption to their ability to educate.

Private employers follow a different set of guidelines, and in some cases, can enforce consequences on employees based on their social media activity.

ABC57 reached out to the Attorney General's office but he was not available for an interview Tuesday. ABC57 hopes to sit down with AG Rokita later this week.