Mahanoy Area School District vs B.L by Sal DiBenedetto

Who was involved?

dibenedetto77 — 2025-02-26 19:50:40 UTC

Student: Brandi Levy

Mahanoy Area School District

Facts of the Case

dibenedetto77 — 2025-02-26 19:59:55 UTC

In 2017, a student by the name of Brandi Levy learned that she did not make the public school's varsity cheer team or the spot she wanted on the school's softball team. So in frustration she posted angry private messages on Snapchat which were intended to only be seen by her friends before the messages were automatically deleted. However, one of the cheerleading coaches at her public school was shown a screenshot of the message. As a result, Levy was suspended from the junior varsity cheerleading team for her entire sophomore year.

Questions for the court

dibenedetto77 — 2025-02-26 20:05:42 UTC

Whether the First Amendment prohibits public school officials from regulating student speech that occurs off campus.

Conclusion

dibenedetto77 — 2025-02-26 20:10:20 UTC

On June 23, 2021, the Supreme Court affirmed that important constitutional protections, like the freedom of speech, do not evaporate when students attend public schools. As “nurseries of democracy,” public schools must respect the constitutional rights of their students, especially when students are speaking off-campus, on the weekend, to their friends. In his concurring opinion, Justice Alito further emphasized that religious speech, which lies “at the heart of the First Amendment,” enjoys significant constitutional protection and “is almost always beyond the regulatory authority of a public school.”

Website

dibenedetto77 — 2025-03-03 16:06:51 UTC

Video

dibenedetto77 — 2025-03-03 17:43:36 UTC