Pennsylvania’s Downingtown Area School District has agreed to clarify its administrative policies to ensure that public sidewalks surrounding its schools are open to free speech.
The Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) announced the agreement with the district as part of a settlement to avoid being sued in court.
Under the terms, the school district will take immediate steps to prevent incidents like the one that occurred in April, by clarifying polices with staff.
It was late in April when 40-year-old administrator Zach Ruff physically intimidated and shouted expletives at two teens, Connor and Lauren Haines, who were expressing their pro-life views on a public sidewalk near the school.
According to ADF, the incident was captured on video in which Ruff “angrily demanded that they ‘shut up,’ eventually attempting to rip a sign out of their hands, which could constitute assault and battery in Pennsylvania.”
Warning: Video Contains Explicit Language.
The school district sent a letter to the two teens acknowledging the violation of their rights and assuring them that it won’t happen again.
“I write on behalf of the Downingtown Area School District to acknowledge the illegality of Dr. Zach Ruff’s behavior on April 21 when you were speaking on the public sidewalk outside the Downingtown STEM Academy,” wrote Superintendent of Schools Emilie Lonardi in a July 7 letter to Conner and Lauren Haines.
“You had every right under our Constitution’s First Amendment to speak and display signs like you did, and that right was violated by Dr. Ruff. Rest assured that Dr. Ruff’s actions do not represent the policy of the School District. Instead, we will be providing information to our employees on the First Amendment rights of individuals.”
Ruff subsequently resigned from his position in the district as a result of the incident.
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