ORLANDO, Fla. – A federal judge has ruled that Brevard Public Schools’ public participation policy did not violate free speech rights in a lawsuit filed by the conservative group Moms For Liberty.
The group’s Brevard County chapter and individual members filed the lawsuit in November 2021 in federal court in Orlando and sought a preliminary injunction against the public-participation policy. Among other things, they contend that speakers are frequently interrupted for criticizing the school board, including for comments deemed “personally directed” at board members.
The order of summary judgement was made on Monday in Orlando’s federal court by Judge Roy B. Dalton.
“(Moms for Liberty) argue that the Chair’s custom of reading a criminal statute that penalizes disruptions before Board meetings and that her use of the Policy to interrupt and eject speakers chills their speech. But M4L members, including Hall, Delaney, and Cholewa, have regularly continued to speak at meetings -- demonstrating that actual enforcement of the Policy has not chilled the exercise of their right to speak,” Dalton wrote.
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“The record demonstrates that the Chair’s interruptions of Plaintiffs, and others, for personally directed comments were regularly brief and respectful, and Plaintiffs freely finished speaking,” he wrote. “So Plaintiffs have not experienced the objective chill necessary to establish standing, entitling Defendants to summary judgment.”
A spokesman for Brevard Public Schools had nothing to add to the judge’s order for summary judgement, but an attorney for Moms for Liberty did react.
“We are disappointed with the court’s decision and strongly disagree with it,” said attorney Ryan Morrison with the Institute for Free Speech. “The First Amendment protects parents’ right to criticize their public school system and elected school board without censorship. We will appeal and ultimately prevail, just as the Institute for Free Speech has in other school board cases across the country.”
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