Schoolgirl suspended for warning about 'rapist' was within free speech rights, judge says

Form of discipline was probably unconstitutional, says district judge Lance Walker

15-year-old Aela was suspended earlier this month (WMTW-TV)

By Aela Mansmann's account, the sticky note was an act of protest over her school's handling of sexual assault claims.

"THERE'S A RAPIST IN OUR SCHOOL AND YOU KNOW WHO IT IS," read the yellow square the teenager left on a bathroom mirror at Cape Elizabeth High School in Maine. She gave no name.

To administrators, though, the notes were a form of bullying meriting Aela's three-day suspension, a punishment that outraged people around the country who worried about victims being silenced.

Now, a judge says that Aela's explosive note was protected free speech - and that her discipline was probably unconstitutional. The 15-year-old's actions involved "political advocacy on a question of significant public consequence," US District Judge Lance Walker wrote Thursday as he placed a temporary restraining order on the suspension.

Cape Elizabeth School District had argued that Aela's note amounted to defamation not covered by the First Amendment. They also said they responded appropriately to a school disruption and an invasion of another student's rights. But Mr Walker decided the teenager was likely to prevail in court.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Maine hailed the decision as a reminder that students "do not check their rights at the schoolhouse gate," as well as a win for open discussion of what Aela called "one of the most pressing issues of our time - the prevalence of sexual violence and the danger of inaction by those in positions of power."

"Speaking up about sexual assault is already difficult for young people," Alison Beyea, executive director of the ACLU of Maine, said in a statement. "If this punishment had been allowed to stand, it would have only made it more difficult."

The decision was also welcomed by Aela's mother, Shael Norris. The case was filed under Ms Norris's name.

"All my daughter ever wanted was for students to feel safe speaking out about sexual assault," she said. "I'm so proud of her for standing up for what she believes in."

School district superintendent Donna Wolfram said in a statement that "safety of our students is our highest priority" and that the district will keep reviewing and updating its policies to meet both its needs and state law.

But the district did not say Friday whether it plans to pursue a punishment for Aela. It also did not comment on shorter suspensions given to two other girls who, according to Judge Walker's ruling, posted similar notes in another bathroom after Aela's was taken down.

The controversy began last month when a student flagged the first mirror note to administrators. Officials went on to interview more than 40 students and review security footage in an effort to figure out who the notes referred to and who put them up, Mr Walker wrote.

Then, the family of an unidentified male student went to administrators with concerns. The student said he'd been ostracised and had left school for several days.

Aela's mother has said her daughter initially got assurances there would be no punishment. But on 4 October - the same day Aela opened up to the media about the controversial note and the concerns behind it - the teenager got a letter from administrators imposing the suspension and warning that "any future actions of this sort" could lead to expulsion, according to Mr Walker's ruling.

The school district said at the time that it could not comment on the specifics of the incident, but officials told local media they did not believe there was a rapist on campus. The district said it was obliged to act "when a student's speech bullies another student... even if that same student has also spoken out on a matter of public concern."

Aela's family quickly appealed the sanction, and the sophomore was told she could keep going to class while the matter was pending, the Portland Press Herald reported. Already a vocal activist who recently co-led a "summit" on sexual violence, Aela said she wanted to get people talking about concerns that administrators were overlooking some students' complaints of harassment and assault.

"Why is this person self-identifying as the [alleged] rapist?" Aela told the Press Herald.

Many students rallied around her. How could the sticky notes constitute bullying, they argued, when they never identified a culprit? Dozens walked out of class one morning with signs declaring "I choose to believe survivors" and "Rape culture has got to go," local news outlets reported.

In his response to Aela's request for a legal hold on the suspension, Mr Walker suggested that some founding fathers, too, would be dismayed at a violation of free speech.

"Madison would recoil," he said.

The Washington Post