A Florida labor and delivery nurse has been banned from working in the state following an expletive-filled social media post wishing President Donald Trump’s pregnant press secretary a painful birth.
Florida Attorney General James Usmeyer announced on social media Wednesday that Lexi Lawler has been banned from working as a nurse in the state, effective immediately. Lawler was fired from Baptist Health Boca Raton Regional Hospital earlier this month following a TikTok post about Caroline Leavitt.
“Making statements that wish for someone’s pain and suffering is an ethical line that should not be crossed when those statements are directly related to your practice,” Usmayer wrote on social media.
A GoFundMe account set up to support Mr. Lawlor’s “employment and civil rights advisor” had raised just over $12,000 as of Jan. 29.
“The involvement of Florida’s Attorney General and Surgeon General in an issue that affects a single private citizen represents an unusual level of state involvement,” the GoFundMe account said. “Lexi has never committed medical malpractice, harmed a patient, or had any prior complaints. She has been a nurse for 10 years and has no disciplinary history. She spoke after hours as a private citizen. After that speech, she lost her job, and the state is now moving to revoke her nursing license. We are now fighting not only for her livelihood, but for the principle that her professional credentials should not be used in a way that chills or inhibits legitimate speech.”
Florida nurse Caroline Leavitt fired for video pleading for pain
Lexi Lawler, a labor and delivery nurse in Florida, was fired after a TikTok video about Trump press secretary Caroline Leavitt went viral.
What Florida nurse Lexi Lawler said about Leavitt
In a recent TikTok video, Lawler said she wanted Levitt to undergo a “fourth degree tear” when she gave birth to their second child. Leavitt, 28, is currently pregnant with her second child with husband Nicholas Rossio.
“As a labor and delivery nurse, I am so happy to be able to wish Caroline Leavitt a fourth degree rupture,” Lawlor said in the now-deleted video. “I hope you tear it apart from bow to stern and never run away normally again, you—.”
Lawler returned to social media over the weekend in response to the killing of Alex Preti, a registered nurse and U.S. citizen who was treating veterans in Minneapolis. He was shot and killed by Border Patrol agents on January 24 after confronting immigration authorities.
Federal officials said Preti had a gun that he intended to use to “kill law enforcement.” Bystander video and witness testimony presented in court do not show Preeti brandishing a weapon as she approaches the agents.
“They murdered a man in Minnesota and my mom **** is coming after me because I used foul language? Damn it. I’m on the right side of this. Damn it,” Lawler said, giving up on giving him the middle finger.
Florida hospital confirms layoffs of nurses
On January 23, Baptist Health Boca Raton Regional Hospital released a statement confirming that Lawler had been fired following backlash over his TikTok posts.
“The comments made by nurses at our facility on social media videos do not reflect our values or the standards we expect from our health care workers,” a hospital spokesperson said. “After an expedited review, this individual is no longer employed by our health system.”
It continued: “While we respect the right to an individual’s opinion, there is no place in healthcare for words or actions that call into question a caregiver’s ability to provide compassionate and impartial care.”
Boca Raton Mayor Scott Singer issued a statement condemning Lawler’s actions.
“These disgusting comments have no place in the medical community or in our community,” he wrote on Facebook.
