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St. Louis-area restaurant manager fired after Charlie Kirk Facebook post files lawsuit
Fox2Now ^ | 9/2/2026 | Joey Schneider

Posted on 09/06/2026 7:26:57 PM PDT by simpson96

ST. LOUIS – A former general manager of Lombardo’s Restaurant in St. Louis has filed a wrongful termination lawsuit, saying he was fired after sharing thoughts about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk last year in a Facebook post.

Michael Mormino, an Edwardsville, Illinois resident, formally filed the lawsuit on Monday. He says he worked for Lombardo’s for 15 years and had been promoted to general manager of company’s airport location.

According to the lawsuit, on Sept. 10, 2025, the same day that Kirk was fatally shot in Utah, Mormino shared the following remarks on his personal Facebook page: “Couldn’t happen to a bigger piece of [four-letter expletive] except maybe one I can think of. How’s that 2nd Amendment treating you now [two-word, nine-letter expletive]?”

The lawsuit alleges that the post did not mention Lombardo’s, any specific restaurant, any co-worker, or any customer. It further alleges that Mormino did not write the post on company equipment, on behalf of Lombardo’s, or on the restaurant’s Facebook page.

Mormino contends that the post was personal political speech on his own Facebook account and he did not direct it to anyone connected to the business.

According to the lawsuit, someone took a screenshot of the post and sent it to Lombardo’s owners. The lawsuit says Mormino was initially suspended for two weeks on Sept. 10 and then fired from his job on Sept. 24.

Anthony Lombardo, an owner named in the lawsuit, said there were more circumstances around Mormino’s firing than the lawsuit suggests.

(Excerpt) Read more at fox2now.com ...


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1 posted on 09/06/2026 7:26:57 PM PDT by simpson96
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To: simpson96

The restaurant owner should have the freedom of speech to say, “You’re fired!”

Classless clown should stay unemployed for a long period of time.


2 posted on 09/06/2026 7:36:54 PM PDT by boycott
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To: simpson96

His remarks about Charlie Kirk may have been the last straw.
If this restaurant was already thinking of getting rid of him, now is when all the ‘other stuff’ will come out.

If he had been working there for 15 years, he may have been locally known to be an employee of that eatery.
Even though he posted on his private account, enough local would associate his statement with that restaurant, whether it was fair or not.


3 posted on 09/06/2026 7:42:16 PM PDT by lee martell
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To: simpson96

This is a ridiculous lawsuit that should be dismissed. The owner of the restaurant has every reason to believe his business has been threatened by the comment of his manager.


4 posted on 09/06/2026 7:44:11 PM PDT by willk (Local news media. Just as big an enemy to this country as national media)
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To: simpson96

Businesses shouldn’t be forced to employ people against their will. People should not be censored by government, but that doesn’t mean there are no consequences to problematic speech; freedom means others should not be forced to subsidize or be associated with speech they disagree with.


5 posted on 09/06/2026 7:45:00 PM PDT by EnderWiggin1970
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To: simpson96
After ten years of cancellation and censorship by the left?

Discovery will be entertaining.

6 posted on 09/06/2026 7:46:30 PM PDT by Steely Tom ([Voter Fraud] == [Civil War])
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To: EnderWiggin1970

Lord, save us from all these people who believe their job is a God-given right.


7 posted on 09/06/2026 7:49:34 PM PDT by simpson96
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To: willk

The owner of the restaurant should be able to fire anyone at any time for no reason at all.


8 posted on 09/06/2026 7:50:40 PM PDT by bankwalker (Feminists, like all Marxists, are ungrateful parasites.)
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To: boycott

They do. 1st Amendment only restricts the government. At will employee can be fired, well, at will


9 posted on 09/06/2026 7:51:37 PM PDT by j.havenfarm (25 years on Free Republic, 12/10/25! More than 12,750 replies and still not shutting up!)
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To: simpson96

Lombardo’s has been around since 1934 on “The Hill.”

The original location name is politically incorrect.


10 posted on 09/06/2026 7:53:33 PM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum (Israel First. America... who cares?)
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To: simpson96

If one looks up the restaurant on tripadvisor, Mormino responds to customer comments.
Where does hate like he harbors reside? My guess is that the upper management pegged him as a “bigmouth”. According to management, he posted during working hours and on company computers. Really a disgusting mindset exhibited by him.

I wonder how that first amendment is working out for him. Some abuse 2nd amendment. Some abuse 1st amendment. Who would want to pay such an angry , public , foulmouthed person like he revealed himself to be.


11 posted on 09/06/2026 7:54:29 PM PDT by Getready (Wisdom is more valuable than gold and harder to find.)
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To: simpson96

A drama queen in the restaurant business, say it ain’t so! Sounds like this guy was way too big for his britches.


12 posted on 09/06/2026 7:56:19 PM PDT by Tijeras_Slim
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To: simpson96
Mormino contends that the post was personal political speech on his own Facebook account and he did not direct it to anyone connected to the business.

It was "personal speech" revealing that he supports political assassination and murdering people. It would seem in the opinion of the business owner that goes to character rather than mere political ideology. Likely few businesses would want someone of such poor character working for them. "I support murder on my personal time so it should not affect whether you want to employ me" may prove to be a hard sell in court.

13 posted on 09/06/2026 8:00:33 PM PDT by Republican Wildcat
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To: simpson96

IS MISSOURI AN “AT WILL” HIRING/FIRING STATE ???


14 posted on 09/06/2026 8:00:49 PM PDT by ridesthemiles (not giving up on TRUMP---EVER)
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To: simpson96

“...[two-word, nine-letter expletive]...”
I have been pondering that.
It is not “A H”
It is not “M F”
-
What is a two word nine letter expletive?
Help me out here.


15 posted on 09/06/2026 8:14:53 PM PDT by Repeal The 17th ( I am obsessed with not being obsessed with anything.)
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To: Repeal The 17th

Copilot Search Branding

The only nine‑letter word that fits the description of a two‑word expletive is “expletive” itself.

In English, an expletive is a profane or vulgar term, often a curse or obscene oath
Best Word List
Best Word List
. While it is a single word, it is the only nine‑letter word in the language that contains the letters EXPLETIVE in that exact order
Best Word List
Best Word List
+1
.

If you are looking for a two‑word expletive, examples could be phrases like “darn it” or “gosh darn,” but none of these are nine letters long. The nine‑letter requirement narrows it down to expletive as the only match.


says the net


16 posted on 09/06/2026 8:28:27 PM PDT by PeterPrinciple ((Thinking Caps are no longer being issued, but there must be a warehouse full of them somewhere))
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To: Repeal The 17th
“...[two-word, nine-letter expletive]...”
I have been pondering that.
It is not “A H”
It is not “M F”
-
What is a two word nine letter expletive?
Help me out here.


According to Grok, the phrase was "douche bag" -- which is rude and even offensive, but I'm not sure it's an expletive that would normally be censored.

Anyway, I hope the guy loses his lawsuit and has to pay the restaurant's attorney fees.
17 posted on 09/06/2026 8:34:54 PM PDT by Alvin Diogenes
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To: boycott

No different than celebrating the murder of black people. Classic hate speech from a classless dirtbag.


18 posted on 09/06/2026 8:36:19 PM PDT by Quentin Quarantino
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To: Repeal The 17th

google A I says it is “D B”.


19 posted on 09/06/2026 8:36:24 PM PDT by Repeal The 17th ( I am obsessed with not being obsessed with anything.)
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To: All
Lombardo's Italian Restaurant makes the best pizza.......among other dishes.


20 posted on 09/06/2026 8:38:02 PM PDT by Liz (“The heavens declare the glory of Gd; the skies the work of His hands." (Psalm 19:1))
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