The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals is ruling that Fresno State must face First Amendment claims for disciplining an outspoken student who confronted two professors, back in 2011.
Neil O’Brien approached the pair with a video camera — seeking comment on a poem — that criticized America.
The professors declined to answer and filed complaints with police.
The University determined that O’Brien violated the student code which authorizes disciplinary sanctions for inappropriate conduct.
The three-judge panel says a dispute remains as to whether the school imposed the discipline as retaliation for O’Brien’s political speech.
He’s a self-described “constitutional conservative.”
