April 29th, 2010

Damning Reply Brief Filed with Federal District Court in Hayden Barnes’ Case

Hayden Barnes' years-long battle with Valdosta State University (VSU) may be entering its final phase. Earlier this month, Barnes' attorneys filed their reply brief in support of their motion for summary judgment with District Judge Charles A. Pannell, Jr. of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Atlanta Division.

It's been a long road for Hayden, who was expelled in 2007 for posting a collage on Facebook critical of former VSU President Ronald Zaccari's plan to construct two parking garages on campus with millions of dollars in student fees. FIRE supporters will no doubt remember the case as one of the worst abuses of a student's First Amendment rights we here at FIRE have ever seen. If you're not familiar with Hayden's epic ordeal, this short film will get you up to speed:

In the brief, Barnes' legal team—led by noted First Amendment attorney Robert Corn-Revere—make a final argument to Judge Pannell about why summary judgment should be granted to Hayden, obviating the need for a trial. The brief argues that VSU's treatment of Hayden violated his First Amendment right to freedom of expression, his due process rights, his rights under the Americans With Disabilities Act, ...

FIRE - The Torch

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 29th, 2010 at 7:08 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

Comments are closed.