PALMETTO BAY, Fla. (WSVN) — All eyes were on councilmember Steve Cody during a Village of Palmetto Bay council meeting as pressure grows on him to resign from his post following his controversial comments on the murder of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Cody has faced backlash for a number of days following his post in the aftermath of Kirk’s death where he wrote: “Charlie Kirk is a fitting sacrifice to our lords: Smith and Wesson. Hallowed be their names.”
Village, federal and state officials have all joined in on the chorus of people calling for Cody’s resignation.
On Monday, U.S. Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar posted to social media saying, “The disgusted comments made by Steve Cody about Charlie Kirk’s assassination have disrupted the business of Palmetto Bay. Residents have lost trust in him and it will be nearly impossible to regain it. For the good of the Village, he must step down and let Palmetto Bay restore trust and move forward.”
Late Monday night, residents got their say, telling Cody that he needs to resign from office. A large public response came out to show their opposition to Cody’s comments.
“Cody needs to resign or be fired. Either way, he needs to go. He is a disgrace to the Village,” said a resident.
“If you have any honor, in my humble opinion, you would step down,” said another resident.
Since his initial comment, Cody has walked back the controversial post, saying he had “screwed up.” and wrote a letter that said he “regrettably made a significant error in judgement.”
Despite days of pressure, Cody told reporters Monday that he’s not going anywhere.
“I wrote something that was very stupid but if every time a politician did something that was stupid, we’d never have anybody who ever be able to serve in office. I took it down, I apologized. I don’t intend on resigning,” he said.
Village Vice Mayor Mark Merwitzer said the council won’t move forward with any council business until Cody turns in his resignation.
“Having a council member make a comment so vile about the brutal assassination of someone is just very unbecoming of an elected official,” he said.
During the meeting, the mayor introduced a resolution to censure Cody and calling for him to resign.
“When I saw the posting on social media, frankly I was sick to my stomach,” said Palmetto Bay Mayor Karyn Cunningham.
However, the council can’t force him, but Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis could step in and the community could vote for a recall.
Following the public comment period, council members voted to request DeSantis and Florida’s attorney general to open an investigation into whether Cody’s social media post is grounds for removal.
Cody joins a growing number of people across the country feeling pressure to resign or getting fired over comments about Kirk’s death on social media.
In South Florida, a University of Miami fired Neurologist Dr. Michelle Bravo after she re-shared a post on social media that read: “What was done to Charlie Kirk was done to countless Palestinian babies, children, girls, boys, women, and men. Charlie Kirk came out to say, ‘I love this. I want more of this.’ As Malcom said, ‘The chickens have come home to roost.'”
In a statement, UM said “Freedom of speech is a fundamental right. At the same time, expressions that condone or endorse violence or are incompatible with our policies and values are not acceptable.”
Florida Atlantic University also placed an unidentified staff member on leave pending an investigation into their social media comments.
Additionally, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission fired one of their employees over social media posts making light of Kirk’s murder and said in a statement: “The comments and actions of this individual are not in line with the FWC, our values, or our mission. We have a zero-tolerance policy towards the promotion of violence and hate, and we will not stand for such behavior.”
Meantime, a memorial was held at Florida International University where heartbroken students from Kirk’s Turning Point USA chapter and other members of the Panthers community remembered Kirk’s legacy and his movement.
“Today we grieve, but we do not grieve as those without hope,” said a student.
“He transformed the lives of many through his presence on college campuses,” said another student.
Members of the organization vowed to keep Kirk’s message and memory alive.
“That’s what Charlie said, ‘Your voice matters, your voice is a part of the process and you deserve to be involved in it,'” said a third student.
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