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Evans v. Selma Union High School District of Fresno County
he California State Supreme Court held that the King James version of the Bible was not a "publication of a sectarian, partisan, or denominational character", a public school library asked that the book be excluded. They disagreed because The mere act of purchasing a book to be added to the school library does not carry with it any implication of negativity. It is just a book to be added to a library collection -
Bethel School District v. Fraser, 1968
A public school student was suspended after he gave a speech at an assembly that included indecent content. He sued the school for violating his 1st amendment rights. The supreme court decided that the school did not violate his rights. The 1st amendment does not prevent school officials from discipling their students and punishing them for using offensive and inappropriate language. It's the school’s right to teach students discipline therefore they did not overstep and were not found guilty. -
Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District, 1969
When the school officials were informed that students wanted to wear black armbands to protest the Vietnam war, they banned the armbands but the students wore them anyway. They sued the school district for violating their first amendments rights after getting suspended. The Supreme Court passed the “Tinker Test” was passed. It only allowed the free expression or speech of students to be interfered if the students’ attire, actions or speech threatens a substantial disruption of education. -
Mozert v. Hawkins County Board of Education, 827 F.2d 1058 (6th Cir. 1987)
Students and parents complained to school officials that the information some textbooks carry are offensive to their religion. They demanded that the textbooks be banned. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit rejected the plaintiffs' claim because the first amendment does not require students to change their curriculum in order to accommodate religious beliefs. -
Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier, 1988
A public school principal removed 2 articles from the newspaper that the school paid for. The articles were about “teen pregnancy” and “divorce”. Three students sued the school district claiming that they are violating their 1st amendment rights. The supreme court found that the school district didn't violate their rights. Schools are allowed to regulate the content of student newspaper that bears its name or is paid by the school. They weren't charged because it involved educational concerns. -
Romano v. Harrington
The U.S. district court found in favor of a faculty adviser to a high school newspaper. He claimed that his first amendment rights were violated when he was fired for the publication of a student's article opposing the federal holiday for Martin Luther King, Jr. -
R.A.V. v. St. Paul, 505 U.S. 377, 112 S.Ct. 2538, 120 L.Ed.2d. 305 (1992)
St. Paul, Minnesota passed an ordinance which banned “hate speech” which triggered others. The Supreme Court struck the ordinance down because it unconstitutionally discriminated others. The law only protected negative speech on topics such as race, gender or religion meanwhile topics such as political affiliation and sexual orientation were not protected by the law. -
American Amusement Machine Association, et al., v. Teri Kendrick, et al., 244 F.3d 954 (7th Cir. 2001); cert.denied, 534 U.S. 994; 122 S. Ct. 462; 151 L. Ed. 2d 379 (2001):
In Indianapolis, the city ordinance required that children of 17 years or younger had a parent or legal guardian when purchasing or renting video games which promoted violence, bloodshed or sexual intercorse. a three-judge panel of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals remanded the trial court's decision stating that "children have First Amendment rights." The supreme court denied the certiorari. -
Morse v. Frederick, 2007
A public school student was suspended for displaying a banner which promoted drugs use. The banner said “BONG HiTS 4 JESUS”, when the principal saw the banner the student got suspended. The student sued the school for violating his rights. The Supreme Court agreed that the school did not violate the student’s rights because schools have the right to regulate anything that goes against their “no drug policy”. -
Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission
Jack, a cake artist, politely declined making a wedding cake for a same gender couple's marriage because it went against his beliefs and religion. The couple filed a law suit in hopes to take away the right of declining such offers even if it goes against their beliefs. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Jack because everybody deserves the freedom to follow their own beliefs and decline such jobs.
