IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS
R.L., a Minor, by & through his father, ROGER LEWIS, Plaintiff,
) ) ) ) )
No. 20 C 1942 Judge Roberta Caputo
v.
LOOP AREA SCHOOL DISTRICT, Defendant.
) )
TRAIL BRIEF IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT, LOOP AREA SCHOOL DISTRICT, MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGEMENT
Now comes the Defendant, LOOP AREA SCHOOL DISTRICT, by its
attorneys, Smith & shores, L.L.P., and moves this Court, pursuant
to Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, for entry of
an order of summary judgment in favor of the Defendant and
against the Plaintiff. In support, the Defendant, LOOP AREA
SCHOOL DISTRICT, submits its Trial Brief in Support of Motion for
Summary Judgment, and states as follows:
STATEMENT OF FACTS
A. Thicke, the student targeted in the Facebook post, and
R.L., the Plaintiff, are both students at the Smythe College Prep
High School (sCP), which is part of the Loop Area School
District, the Defendant. Answer Compl. I 6, lo. R.L., following
the Team's loss at the Midwest Regional Finals, posted an entry
visible to his 57 followers; Thicke was not one of them. Id. I
14. In the post, R.L. called Thicke worthless, too heavy to
compete, and called for Thicke to be taken off the Team. Id. I
15. Within twenty-four hours, four students shared this post on
locker two days later. Id. I 16-l7. This behavior, prompted by
Finals, let to Thicke's desire to quit the Team. Id. I 20.
On May 4, 20l9, Principal Skinner and Coach Peterson of the
Track and Field Team met with the whole team and their parents to
discuss the incident. Id. I 2l. Principal Skinner stated that
R.L., who wrote the post, and the students who taped the post to
Thicke's locker were accused of bullying. Id. The scP Student
Handbook, which each student receives at the start of the school
year and must sign as acknowledgement before starting classes,
prohibits any student from engaging in speech or conduct that (l)
is intended to insult or stigmatize any person in any way, and
(2) causes a disruption in school or distract other students in
the educational process. Id. I l8-l9. Principal Skinner expelled
remove all online posts related to Thicke. Id. I 22. R.L. has
been a member of the Varsity Track and Field Team since he was a
freshman. Id. I 9. The Plaintiff, R.L., filed a complaint against
the Defendant alleging violation of his First Amendment rights
and a motion for summary judgment against the Defendant. Pl.
2
Compl.; Pl. Mot. Summ. J. The Defendant filed a cross-motion for
summary judgment in its favor. Def. Cross-mot. Summ. J.
ARGUMENT
R.L.'s Facebook post constituted bullying towards Thicke and
led to in-class discussions about anti-bullying conducted by
operation. Accordingly, this Court should grant summary judgment
." U.s. Const. amend. I. However, Tinker, which allows
schools to regulate student speech that substantially interferes
with the discipline required for the school's operation,