Statement Regarding Facebook Post by Police Officer Travis Carroll
Following an extensive and objective investigation, and intense thoughtful deliberation in recent days, Police Officer Travis Carroll has been suspended without pay for two work shifts by the Town of Emerald Isle. This suspension follows a recent insensitive and offensive Facebook post following the killing of political figure Charlie Kirk.
I fully recognize that this issue is politically and emotionally charged, and that this decision may elicit praise from some members of our community and criticism from other members of our community. I suspect many of those responses will be tied to whether or not the individual subscribes to the general political sentiment espoused by Charlie Kirk during his career and by Carroll in his recent Facebook post. Those responses are understandable and respected, however, the decision to suspend Carroll has absolutely nothing to do with the political opinions on either side. Rather, this decision is solely rooted in the significant negative consequences of Carroll’s actions on the Emerald Isle Police Department and the Town of Emerald Isle, none of which would have occurred had Carroll simply not violated Police Department and Town policy and made an insensitive and offensive post on Facebook. This decision also reflects Carroll’s previous service record, his motivation and intent behind the original post, his subsequent action to remove the post, and his expressed regret and apology for the harm his actions have caused to others and the Emerald Isle community, the Police Department, and the Town organization.
To be clear, any individual reading this statement is advised that this action results solely because of the offensive post made by Carroll that has and will likely continue to erode public trust and confidence in Carroll, the Police Department, and the Town government. All of us at the Town of Emerald Isle work extremely hard every day to build and maintain that trust and confidence, and to demonstrate our deep commitment to serving the entire community that makes up Emerald Isle. This decision is aimed at repairing this damage caused by Carroll’s post, and beginning to restore any lost confidence and trust.
The integrity and objectivity of the Emerald Isle Police Department is now understandably questioned as a result of Carroll’s post, which explicitly labels a slain political figure as a racist and suggests that his killing does not deserve empathy because of Kirk’s political opinions. The post also appears to implicitly apply to other broader groups that share Kirk’s political opinions. The statements in the Carroll post are highly offensive and insensitive if / when made by any person, but especially so when the statements are made by a law enforcement officer whose most essential responsibility is and who is duly sworn to protect individuals from the violence that ended Kirk’s life. For a sworn law enforcement officer to lack empathy or sympathy for any murder of any individual, in a public forum, is simply not consistent with our expectations. While it may be an individual’s legal right to make such insensitive and offensive statements, the standard is rightfully much higher for a public servant sworn to protect our community, and it is simply not acceptable to the Town of Emerald Isle.
Carroll has violated Town and EIPD policies that he was fully aware of when the statement was made. Ultimately he exercised extremely poor judgment, and with a lack of basic respect that sadly appears often in modern American political discourse. Simply put, if one does not have anything nice to say about someone, perhaps it should not be said at all. This is advisable toward any living human being, but especially so for a deceased human being with family and friends grieving in the immediate aftermath of his death. That said, any individual may choose to make any comments they wish, no matter how offensive or insensitive. However, this is unacceptable for a sworn law enforcement officer of the Town of Emerald Isle, and is not consistent with our public service expectations.
More serious disciplinary action was considered in response to Carroll’s post, however, it is important to consider the overall context of this incident and the opportunity for growth this incident provides for Carroll, the Town organization, and for all of us. First, it is important to note that Carroll has served as a Police Officer in Emerald Isle since 2018, and has provided high quality law enforcement service to our citizens with no previous performance or personal conduct concerns. It is also important to note that the original post appeared on Carroll’s private Facebook account, and that the text was lifted by a third party and subsequently combined with a different official EIPD photo and then widely disseminated. There was no intent or actual action by Carroll to promote this post as an official statement of the EIPD or the Town of Emerald Isle, and it merely reflected his participation in a personal political debate, however damaging his comments are to the EIPD and the Town of Emerald Isle. Carroll deactivated his Facebook account soon after the text of his post was copied and disseminated, informed his superiors at EIPD, and expressed regret and apologized for the comments and the impact on the EIPD. During the subsequent investigation, Carroll again expressed regret, apologized, communicated an understanding of the impact of his comments, and demonstrated a desire to learn and grow from this incident. Carroll has already learned and grown from this incident, as has the entire Town of Emerald Isle organization. In the coming weeks, the Town will carefully review and update its social media policies and provide additional training to the entire Town workforce.
All of us make mistakes in life and have said things we wish we could take back, and the Town believes that Carroll will emerge from this suspension a better Police Officer and a better human being. I respectfully submit to you that Emerald Isle is better than this behavior and these types of conflicts, but also recognizes the value of an opportunity at redemption, which Carroll will have once he returns to duty.
Finally, and most importantly, on behalf of the Town, I sincerely apologize to everyone offended by Carroll’s post. The Town of Emerald Isle expresses its deepest sympathy to Charlie Kirk’s family and friends, and prays for an end to the disturbing politically motivated violence that has sadly pervaded American society in recent years. We are all incredibly blessed to enjoy the wonderful community that is Emerald Isle, and I commit to you that we will learn and improve as a result of this incident, and continue to provide the high quality local government services that our residents, property owners, visitors, and businesses deserve and expect.
Officer Carroll has been on paid administrative leave since September 17, and a portion of this leave has been reclassified as unpaid suspension. Officer Carroll will return to duty on September 24.
With sincere and genuine respect for those who may agree or disagree with this decision and statement, and with the deepest care and concern for the overall community of Emerald Isle, sincerely,
Frank A. Rush, Jr.
Town Manager
September 24, 2025