As the country mourns the horrific assassination of 31-year-old father, husband, and conservative commentator Charlie Kirk, some of the teachers educating Maine children appeared to be celebrating this instance of political violence.
[RELATED: Waterville Teacher Update: Back to Unhinged Posts, But No Longer Employed by the School…]
In the wake of the tragic shooting, social media user Ricky Klatt posted an Instagram story apparently expressing his support for the political assassination of Kirk and his hope that the devout Christian commentator will “rest in hell.”
“Dude openly supports an active genocide and you want prayers? Dude is openly racist, transphobic, is the face of hate rhetoric and misinformation and you want me to be sad? Dude defends school shootings and says ’empathy is weakness’ and you want me to feel bad,” said Klatt.
“Karma will come for everyone in this life or the next one. Rest in hell Charlie Kirk,” he added.
His post also mocked people who expressed sadness that Kirk’s children will now grow up without a father, appearing to accuse them of not caring when children die as a result of school shootings.
“‘He has children’ you evil fucks don’t care when the victims ARE children,” said Klatt.
Ricky Klatt appears to be the online profile of Kennebunk High School Health Teacher Richard Klatt, who began work at the school in 2024 after leaving a job at Sacopee High School in Hiram.
According to a 2024 student-written biography of Klatt, his advice for students was, “Make good choices because they all add up and they all matter.” Both his Instagram page and his teacher bio include references to the Green Bay Packers, providing further evidence that Ricky Klatt is also the health teacher.
One Facebook user, Kaleb Cabading, condemned Klatt’s apparent support for political violence, claiming that he was a former student disgusted by his former teacher’s comments.
“I hope this man Ricky Klatt is out of my old highschool system or any other school system. not many things rub me the wrong way for me to make a post about it, but here we are. you should not post things like this when you have all kids you used to teach as followers. especially when you’re supposed to be a role model for all of us to follow and learn from. you may have you’re own opinion with out a doubt. this was not the right way to do it,” said Cabading.
The Maine Wire reached out to Superintendent Martin Grimm of Regional School Unit (RSU) 21, where Klatt works, inquiring whether Klatt will face any disciplinary action.
Grimm did not immediately respond.
Grimm did address concerns about Klatt’s comments, via an emailed statement to parents.
“We are actively reviewing the matter and carefully considering next steps. We will not be able to provide any specific comments due to the fact that this is being handled as a personnel matter,” Grimm said.
“I want to emphasize to the school community that the administration does not condone violence of any type and the message in the post does not allign with our core values of Integrity, Equity, Collaboration, Innovation, and Inclusivity,” he added.
Grimm also alerted authorities to the situation.
“We have made the appropriate authorities aware of the situation as a precaution. However, at this time, we have no indication of any safety concerns,” he said.
Klatt, unfortunately, isn’t the only Maine teacher expressing apparent support for Kirk’s assassination. Sarah Brown used her Facebook account to repost a statement suggesting that Kirk got what he deserved.
“So I’m supposed to feel bad about the things that are happening to people who vote in a way that was guaranteed to hurt everybody around them, thinking that somehow because they were supporting this evil, that it would spare them,” said the reposted statement.
“You have the day you deserve. You have the day you voted for and may it be as miserable And disgusting as you are,” it continued.
Brown’s account shows that she is a science teacher in Guilford’s Maine School Administrative District (MSAD) 4, which is corroborated by the district’s employee directory.
Brown’s account settings only allow her Facebook friends to see the majority of her posts, but one of them reached out to The Maine Wire and provided screenshots showing that she has a history of reposting radical statements criticizing President Donald Trump and his supporters.
“If you voted for Trump, I do think you are a racist. I do think you’re a misogynist. Racism, and homophobia, and misogyny are all a spectrum, and you’re on it,” said one statement she re-posted.
The Maine Wire reached out to MSAD 4 Superintendent Kelly MacFadyen.
“I am aware of the situation and, as I am sure you know, I can not comment on a personnel issue,” she said in an emailed response.
Kirk dedicated his advocacy to open debate on college campuses across America in part because he was concerned that the educational establishment in the country had adopted a polarizing set of beliefs with which it was indoctrinating students. These instances of Maine educators publicly declaring that his assassination on Wednesday was the result of “karma” and what he deserved seem to speak to the very set of ingrained prejudice he challenged with his life’s work.
The Maine Wire has reported previous instances of Maine educators calling for violence against Trump supporters, including a Waterville high school English teacher who mused on Facebook about how the Secret Service ought to “take out” Trump and his inner circle.
We will continue to closely monitor this disturbing trend among taxpayer-supported employees charged with educating the state’s children.
Update: This post has been updated to include the official statement from Grimm.
