A federal judge dismissed a former University of Mississippi employee’s lawsuit against Chancellor Glenn Boyce, which claims he violated her First Amendment rights by firing her for comments she shared on social media after the assassination of Charlie Kirk, criticizing the politically far right activist’s stances on issues including gun rights and women’s rights.
U.S. District Judge Glen Davidson ruled Monday in favor of a motion Boyce had filed to dismiss the lawsuit. Davidson determined that Lauren Stokes, a former executive assistant in the university’s development office, failed to prove that the chancellor violated her constitutional rights. Davidson also ruled that Boyce, in his role as chancellor, is entitled to qualified immunity.
Stokes sued seeking damages, legal fees, and a declaration that Boyce violated her First Amendment rights.
Kirk was shot and killed on Sept. 10. In a statement issued the next day on behalf of the university, Boyce did not name Stokes, but described the comments she shared as “hurtful” and “insensitive,” and that they “run completely counter” to the university’s values of “civility, fairness, and respecting the dignity of each person.”
Davidson wrote in his ruling that Stokes, the plaintiff, “cannot rebut the Defendant’s qualified immunity defense because she cannot show her interest in her social media post outweighed the Defendant’s interest in the University’s efficient operation.”
The Turning Point Tour stop at the University of Mississippi is the only joint appearance of Vice President JD Vance and Erika Kirk, the widow of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Credit: Richard Lake / Mississippi TodayUnited Campus Workers, which represents higher education employees in Mississippi, raised concerns about Davidson’s ruling and its implications for free speech within the context of ”modern online discourse.”
In a statement, the union said Davidson also did not adequately consider the merits of Stokes’ claim that Boyce engaged in viewpoint discrimination when, after firing her, he attended a political rally honoring Kirk, the statement read. The “ruling will enable the mob to trump an individual’s right to hold and express contrary political opinions.”
An Ole Miss spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Alysson Mills, Stokes’ attorney, said they plan to appeal the ruling.
“This is not the law as we understand it,” Mills said Wednesday. “This is the heckler’s veto. We intend to appeal to defend the rights of employees at the University of Mississippi.”
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