Thread: Novato Student Had Free-Speech Right to Blast Illegal Immigr

Novato Student Had Free-Speech Right to Blast Illegal Immigration, Court Rules

Contact: Paul J. Beard II
Attorney
Pacific Legal Foundation
(916) 419-7111

Sharon L. Browne
Principal Attorney
Pacific Legal Foundation
(916) 419-7111

Ray Young
Halldin Public Relations
ray@halldinpr.com
(916) 781-0659

SAN FRANCISCO, California; May 22, 2007: Novato High School officials violated the free-speech rights of student Andrew Smith by condemning an opinion article he wrote in the student newspaper opposing illegal immigration, according to an appellate court ruling issued this week. The California First District Court of Appeal held that California law “mandates that a school may not prohibit student speech simply because it presents controversial ideas and opponents of the speech are likely to cause disruption.â€

ROF Enjoying this verdict!

Notice that the ACLU didn't come to his rescue? But Pacific Legal Foundation did.

Dixie

Buzz wins First Amendment appeal in SF court

By Kendall Watson Staff Writer
The Buzz may be long gone, but the words of the defunct student paper are still ringing in the ears of the Novato Unified School District.

Reversing a 2005 decision, the 1st District Court of Appeals court in San Francisco ruled May 21 that the NUSD had violated a student's free-speech rights in 2001 and is liable for litigation fees totalling more than $20,000. Andrew Smith, a 2002 Novato High School graduate, was an opinion editor for the school paper, The Buzz, and penned a provocative editorial, titled “Immigration.â€