Facebook, the First Amendment, and Anti-Teacher Rants
Katherine 'Katie' Evans, who was suspended from high school in 2007 for creating a Facebook page to rant against a teacher. Evans' case against her former principal at Pembroke Pines Charter High School in Florida moved forward this week when a judge ruled her Facebook page fell under the protection of the First Amendment.
A Florida federal judge has ruled that a high school student's venting against a teacher on Facebook falls under the protection of the First Amendment.
Earlier this week, Judge Barry Garber ruled in favor of the student, Katherine Evans, 19, allowing her suit against her former high school principal, Peter Bayer, of Pembroke Pines Charter High School in Broward County, Florida, to move forward.
Evans received a three-day suspension from Pembroke Pines in 2007 after the principal discovered a Facebook page she'd created to vent about a teacher she disliked. An honors student, she was also removed from AP classes. Although she removed the Facebook page two days after it was discovered, it was two months later that she received the suspension.
With the help of the Florida ACLU, Evans brought suit against Bayer in 2008 in an attempt to remove the disciplinary action from her academic record.
In his opinion, Judge Garber wrote, "Evans' speech falls under the wide umbrella of protected speech. It was an opinion of a student about a teacher, that was published off-campus, did not cause any disruption on-campus, and was not lews, vulgar, threatening, or advocating illegal or dangerous behavior."
According to a report by the Miami Herald, Garber refused to dismiss the case, leaving open the possibility that Evans could also collect reimbursement for legal fees against Bayer if successful. However, he did not grant the request to force removal of the suspension from her high school record, recommending she amend her complaint and solicit that from the appropriate parties.
Legal experts have been watching the case closely as one considered groundbreaking in the intersection of social media, student-school relationships, and the First Amendment. In this case, it appears the judge supports the concept that the reach of a school, its teachers and administrators, should not exceed its grasp.
On the Web:
Complaint, US District Court, Southern District of Florida - Evans v. Bayer
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Comments
Thanks very much for posting this, Kathy.
rated
The school overstepped, and the court made the proper ruling.
What misplaced spite! What envy!
Anyone with a general capacity for logic knows that a student's eligibility for AP classes is absolutely irrelevant to her posts on an internet social site. Obviously these administrators didn't get that far, and took the liberty to be overly harsh. Nor will they understand how transparent their actions are.
Let's rant about Congress on facebook and see what happens to us!
But that's beside the point. Where is the concern about slander/libel in this case? If that teacher applied for another job and another administrator searched his name online (as employers are increasingly doing), how is the existence of a "Worst Teacher in the World" page on the web going to affect him? Guarantee you, it won't be positive. How is the existence of the page going to affect his reputation in the school for students he has not yet taught and their parents? Do you really believe that it did not lead to disruptions in his classroom? At the very least, it probably led to some younger students not even giving him a chance to prove himself to them, but rather coming into his classes with an attitude of disrespect.
Not to mention that the decision sends the message to teens that we do not value civility, courtesy, respect and education. Courts have ruled in the past that free speech does not necessarily extend into the school for those reasons. And the internet is available in school.
Please Keep Up The Good Work.
Respectfully Submitted,
Tar-Paper Shacks