Last April, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the denial of a preliminary injunction in a suit brought by two California high school students claiming that their high school improperly banned one of them-- Tyler Harper-- from wearing a T-shirt proclaiming: "Be Ashamed, Our School Embraced What God Has Condemned", and "Homosexuality Is Shameful". A school rule banned the T-shirts as "hate behavior". A petition for cert. is pending in the U.S. Supreme Court. Now in Harper v. Poway Unified School District, (SD CA, Jan. 24, 2007), the district court has dismissed claims brought by Tyler Harper as moot because he has graduated. It also rejected the First Amendment and state law challenges to the school's hate behavior policies brought by Tyler's sister, Kelsie Harper. Yesterday's San Diego Union-Tribune reported on the decision. It says that Kevin Theriot, lawyer for the Harpers, says they will appeal the district court decision.
UPDATE: On Feb. 7, Alliance Defense Fund filed a notice of appeal on behalf of Tyler and Kelsie Harper.
