“Here, there is no evidence in the record of any parents or community members contacting the school to express their concerns about plaintiff’s advertisement,” the court said. “Thus, whether defendant’s concerns of disruption were reasonable is an open question and makes this case inappropriate for summary judgment.”
An Illinois school employee’s First Amendment claim against her former school district for her termination can proceed to trial over a gun raffle advertisement in support of her political campaign, a federal judge held Wednesday.
U.S. District Judge Sunil R. Harjani of the Northern District of Illinois said the Board of Education of East Aurora School District 131 did not provide adequate evidence that a gun raffle advertisement Elizabeth Caparelli-Ruff posted on her personal Facebook caused a “significant disruption” to grant the district summary judgment. Caparelli-Ruff claimed she posted the advertisement as a private citizen, and the raffle supported her run for public officer, which is a matter of public concern.
