School choice activist Corey DeAngelis sued Kentucky’s Pulaski County School Board for violating his First Amendment right to free speech. The school district blocked DeAngelis from posting on its public Facebook page after he called out the district for illegal electioneering.
The school district used its Facebook page, website and digital bulletin boards to post messages opposing a 2024 ballot initiative, Amendment 2, which would have provided state funds for students outside of public schools. In addition, DeAngelis said, “Every school in the district posted it on their official websites.”
According to Liberty Justice Center, which filed suit on DeAngelis’ behalf, it’s illegal in Kentucky for school boards to engage in political activity.
DeAngelis, executive director of the Educational Freedom Institute and an adjunct scholar at the Cato Institute works on behalf of educational freedom, which gives parents the ability to choose the best schools and education for their children’s unique talents, abilities and learning styles.
He posted the news of Pulaski County Schools’ activism on X, commenting, “This electioneering might be illegal.”
DeAngelis also posted documents from the Kentucky School Boards Association and the Office of the Attorney General which said that school board members could state their opinions about issues, but “not spend funds to take a side.”
He also pointed to a statute which says, “Local, state, and federal tax dollars shall not be used to advocate … for or against any public question that appears on the ballot.”
According to the lawsuit, “The Liberty Justice Center sent a letter to the District detailing how the District’s advocacy actions were illegal and demanding removal of the posts.”
In response, as the nonprofit litigation firm stated in its suit:
That same day, the District removed the illegal social media posts, and also closed comments on their new Facebook post announcing the removal of the illegal posts after more than 90 comments – predominantly negative – had been posted.
A few days later, DeAngelis was blocked from the district’s public Facebook page.
The law firm sent another letter to the district, asking it to:
1) refrain from interfering with Mr. DeAngelis’ criticism of the District on social media,
2) reopen public comment, and
3) cease any further efforts to suppress free expression.
DeAngelis and his attorneys allege that the school district violated his First Amendment rights by blocking him from a public forum, pointing to a Supreme Court decision in support:
The Supreme Court has made clear that a government official can be held liable under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for violating the First Amendment – which applies to state and local governments through the Fourteenth Amendment – when the official blocks an individual from the official’s social media page or deletes an individual’s comments from the page.
Senior Attorney for Educational Freedom at the Liberty Justice Center Den McGee said in a statement announcing the lawsuit:
Public officials at all levels of government need to respect the First Amendment – and public school administrators are no exception.
The district’s attempts to censor online criticism of its illegal actions were a blatant violation of Corey’s rights and the rights of Pulaski County residents. We ask the court to ensure those violations are not repeated in the future.
DeAngelis is asking for a permanent injunction against the district to keep it blocking him or others from interacting on its Facebook page. He also wants the judge to declare that his First Amendment right to freedom of speech was violated, and he’s asking for monetary damages for attorney’s fees.
The case is DeAngelis v. Pulaski County Board of Education
Related articles and resources:
Courage in Our Schools: Free Speech is Protected When Teachers Take a Stand
DOJ Asks FBI to Investigate Alleged Harassment of School Board Members
Equipping Parents for Back-to-School – The free download helps you be aware of what’s going on in your child’s classroom and offers guidance for how to advocate for your child
Family Policy Foundation Launches School Board Academy
Good News: Victory for Free Speech in Education
Parents File Lawsuit Against Loudoun County School Board for Violating Open Meeting Laws
Teacher Wrongly Fired for Refusing to Use ‘Preferred Pronouns’ Wins $575,000
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