A North Carolina student has reached a $95,000 settlement with her school district after it accused her of vandalism. The student, Gabby Stout, painted her school’s spirit rock following Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk’s assassination. She wrote, “Freedom 1776” and “Live Like Kirk—John 11:25” after receiving permission to paint on the rock.
Officials later “ordered her tribute to Charlie Kirk censored and painted over it,” the family’s lawsuit explained. “The next day, Defendant’s officials publicly accused G.S. of a crime and a student conduct violation (vandalism), contacted law enforcement, and began cooperating with the criminal investigation.”
The student, represented by lawyers from Alliance Defending Freedom, was then pulled from class, told to write a statement about the matter, and had her phone data observed. “Within three days, Defendant and its officials knew that G.S. had not engaged in vandalism and quietly closed the criminal investigation against her. But they steadfastly refused to clear her name publicly, despite publicly accusing her of a crime before any investigation occurred and despite repeated entreaties from her parents (including entreaties to Defendant itself),” the filing adds. “Instead, they issued false public statements, claiming they had never investigated her for anything.”
The school board has since agreed to adopt a new student speech policy and pay $95,000 in damages and attorneys’ fees, as well as clear the student of any wrongdoing. The board’s latest statement, reported by the Charlotte Observer, says the student’s action “was not an act of vandalism, and the school did not report the incident to law enforcement.”
“This settlement finally reinforces that I did nothing wrong, and the school system has to admit that publicly,” she told Fox News. “After I got permission to paint a message sharing my faith in God, school officials accused me of vandalism in front of my whole school and my entire community. Then they put me through an unfair investigation. They never should have treated me this way, and by saying they regret that I had this experience, they are finally acknowledging that publicly.”
