Freedom Center of Missouri challenges Jackson schools’ decision to suspend student over alleged Snapchat confusion

The Freedom Center of Missouri has filed a lawsuit against Jackson School District on behalf of a student suspended over an alleged social media threat that prompted administrators to close the school in September.

According to the lawsuit, the plaintiff — a 12-year-old student at Jackson Junior High School listed in court documents as “A.N.” — had seen a vague threat of violence on the social media app Snapchat that was directed at "the Jackson school". Out of concern, the plaintiff communicated what she had seen with a friend who attends school in another district.

Since the plaintiff had not taken a screenshot of the original post, she messaged her friend — listed in the suit as “S.C.” — the language they had read from the original threatening post. After receiving the message from the plaintiff, the other student took a screenshot and publicly posted it on their Snapchat story with the plaintiff's name visible, making it look like she had made the threat.

The incident prompted Jackson schools to cancel classes and all extracurricular activities for Friday, Sept. 13. The lawsuit alleges police confirmed the plaintiff was warning another student and was not the source of the threat “several hours later”, and informed the district. However, the plaintiff received a 10-day suspension for engaging in “disruptive speech” or making a “false report” following a meeting with the junior high administration on the following Monday.

“The suspension the school imposed on A.N. was unjustified under the school’s own express policies,” Dave Roland, director of litigation for the Freedom Center of Missouri, said in a news release. “This communication did not fall within the school handbook’s definitions of ‘disruptive speech’ or ‘false reports.’ But even if A.N.’s expression of concern to another student somehow ran afoul of the school’s policies, the First Amendment does not allow schools to police student communications 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”

After the initial suspension was laid out, district superintendent Scott Smith — who is also listed as a defendant in the lawsuit — allegedly added another 170 days to the plaintiff’s suspension, effectively ending her academic year. The lawsuit alleges the district needed to “punish someone for the upheaval caused by the misunderstanding.”

“A.N. is 12 years old,” Roland said in the news release. “She expressed concern about someone else’s social media post to one person who was perfectly aware that A.N. was not threatening anyone. She could not possibly have anticipated that S.C. would post the message publicly and without the appropriate context. The First Amendment applies with full force to these circumstances.”

Jackson School District declined to comment on the ongoing lawsuit.

“The District cannot comment on pending litigation or on confidential student disciplinary matters,” Jackson School Disttict’s statement read. “The district’s first priority is to ensure student safety and to take appropriate action when we receive notice of safety-related concerns.”

The Freedom Center, according to its website, is a not-for-profit, non-partisan organization that focuses its research and litigation on freedom of expression, economic liberty, property rights, religious liberties, limited government and government transparency.