Florida café fears for workers’ safety after barista is accused on Facebook of mocking Charlie Kirk

The owners of a café in Northeastern Florida say they are fearful for their employees’ safety after an out-of-town customer claimed on Facebook to have witnessed workers “openly celebrating Charlie Kirk’s murder” – an allegation the proprietors flatly deny in a federal defamation lawsuit reviewed by The Independent.

In their complaint, Ray and Paige Carter, the proprietors of Amelia Island Coffee, say Atlanta resident Blake Buchanan’s “widely disseminated” allegation has exposed them and the shop’s staff to “threats of violence or actual violence committed against them because of the false Facebook post.”

Buchanan, a 37-year-old licensed physical therapist, “knew [the post] was false” when he made it, according to the complaint.

“In fact, no statement was made by any employee of Amelia Island Coffee about Charlie Kirk at all,” the complaint states. “All that happened was an employee told a customer she liked the customer’s t-shirt, which also said nothing about Charlie Kirk.”

Kirk, a controversial right-wing podcaster popular with young Republicans, was shot dead last September at the age of 31. In the aftermath of Kirk’s assassination, conservative activists and prominent Republicans took aim at “liberals” they thought were in joyful over his death, with everyone from right-wing influencer Laura Loomer to President Trump joining in.

“I will be spending my night making everyone I find online who celebrates his death Famous, so prepare to have your whole future professional aspirations ruined if you are sick enough to celebrate his death,” Loomer posted on X.

An X post by Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee called for a Middle Tennessee State University assistant dean to be fired after she wrote on social media that “hate begets hate,” and that she had “ZERO sympathy” for Kirk. The employee was terminated “effective immediately,” the university told The Tennessean.

Trump, in an appearance on Fox News several days after Kirk was killed, exulted over the firing of MSNBC political analyst Matthew Dowd, who was let go by the network over a comment suggesting that Kirk’s “hateful” rhetoric might have contributed to his shooting.

“They fired this guy Dowd… who’s a terrible guy, terrible human being, but they fired him,” Trump said. “I hear they’re firing other people.”

Amelia Island Coffee’s complaint says that in addition to introducing the spectre of violence, Buchanan’s post also caused “irreparable harm to its… reputation,” as well as “significant… monetary damages to its business” due to lost customers.

Michael Duncan and Matthew McLauchlin, the lawyers for Amelia Island Coffee, do not have permission from their clients to discuss the case at this time, they told The Independent.

Attorneys Kevin Kucharz and Christian Zimm, who are defending Buchanan in the suit, did not respond on Friday to requests for comment.

Amelia Island Coffee is in downtown Fernandina Beach, a popular tourist spot, according to the Carters’ complaint, which was initially filed in Florida state court and removed March 12 to Jacksonville federal court. It says the shop has been at the same location for more than three decades, and was purchased in 2022 by the Carters, who are local residents.

“Amelia Island Coffee’s mission has always been to have an environment that is safe, comfortable, inviting, and welcoming to all, regardless of age, race, religion, gender, political affiliation, or sexual orientation,” the complaint states.

On September 20, 2025, a week and a half after Kirk’s death, a customer walked into Amelia Island Coffee wearing a white t-shirt with red splotches on the front that mimicked spattered blood, and the words “Problem Solved” across the front, the complaint goes on.

According to the complaint, a barista greeted the customer and said that she “liked” their shirt.

The shirt, which has been available on Amazon and other retailers since well before Kirk’s death, also prompted a tsunami of threats toward scores of public and private figures. In one example, a group of Arizona math teachers last Halloween were targeted by furious conservatives who demanded their firings over a photo circulating online that showed them each wearing the garment, NBC News reported at the time. However, the teachers – at least three of whom were fans of Kirk, and had voted for Trump – denied the shirts were related in any way to Kirk, saying the phrase was a joke about “slaying math problems.”

Buchanan, the complaint continues, was in the coffee shop and overheard the interaction between the customer and the barista.

“At some point shortly following his observation of this simple interaction, Buchanan created a post on Facebook on the page of a Facebook group called ‘Fernandina Beach Amelia Island Network,’ which has approximately 11,700 members and is intended as a forum for local Fernandina Beach residents,” the complaint states.

Buchanan joined the public group “shortly before” the post appeared, according to the complaint.

“The employees of Amelia island coffee are openly celebrating Charlie Kirk’s murder today,” the post read.

In a comment beneath the post, the complaint says Buchanan uploaded a stock photo of a model wearing the same shirt and expanded on his explosive claim, writing, “Customer walked in wearing this shirt and one of the employees stopped him and said I love your shirt. Then same employee told all of the other baristas and they all had a good laugh.”

A spate of angry responses followed, with numerous people posting “extremely negative comments about Amelia Island Coffee,” the complaint states.

“Until the coffee shop provides video of the interaction, I have to assume guilt,” one read. “I will boycott the business and suggest others do the same until video is provided which shows me the interaction did not occur.”

“Disgusting,” read another.

A third, which was reposted from X, read, “Democrats are the only group on the planet that can gun down an innocent man, celebrate his death, mock his wife, destroy memorials for him, lie about who killed him and somehow STILL make themselves the victims.”

The complaint argues that Buchanan completely misinterpreted what he claimed to have seen, and that no one was “openly celebrating” Kirk’s death. Still, the complaint says, Buchanan has refused to delete the post and has in fact challenged those commenters who questioned his version of events to “prove me wrong,” one of Kirk’s catchphrases.

For his part, Buchanan argues in a response filed in court that his post was constitutionally protected speech under the First Amendment.

Buchanan’s statement was “not reckless or negligent,” was “not defamatory,” and “did not harm Plaintiff’s reputation,” the response states, further denying that the replies elicited by his post were “extremely negative.”

“Mr. Buchanan will seek the recovery of his attorneys’ fees, costs of litigation, sanctions, and all other costs under Fla. Stat. § 57.105, ef seq. because Plaintiff’s claims are frivolous and meritless,” according to the response.

Amelia Island Coffee is seeking a money judgment against Buchanan for defamation per se and “all presumed and actual damages resulting therefrom, plus interest, costs, and such other relief,” to be determined by a jury.