Cleveland Fire Chief On Leave After Cartoon Post on Charlie Kirk’s Death
Cleveland Fire Chief Anthony P. Luke has been placed on paid administrative leave following a social media post about the assassination of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk. The action was announced this week by city officials after the post drew widespread attention.
According to reports, on September 12, 2025, Chief Luke shared a cartoon video on his personal account. The video depicted a machine gun on a pedestal, surrounded by kneeling elephants. In the clip, one elephant declares, “Bring out the next sacrifice!!” while a quotation attributed to Charlie Kirk scrolls across the screen. The post remained online for a period of time before being deleted Monday, September 15.
Mayor Justin Bibb called the post “insensitive” and “incendiary.” In a written statement, the mayor said the cartoon “romanticizes gun violence, a matter far too serious in a city where we mourn too many families every week, too many lives cut short, and too many children denied safe sleep in their beds.” He added that while free speech is protected by the First Amendment, public officials “bear additional responsibility for the trust our residents place in them.”
City leaders emphasized that the views expressed in the post do not represent the values of Cleveland. Officials confirmed that the city’s Department of Public Safety had opened an internal review, and that Chief Luke was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.
In addition to the chief, the review also extends to other emergency services employees. A firefighter and an EMS worker are under scrutiny for similar posts connected to commentary about Kirk’s death.
Chief Luke joined the Cleveland Division of Fire in 1994 and was appointed fire chief in 2022. He has led the department for the past three years. For now, he remains on paid administrative leave as the city continues its review. More on the story.
