A South Carolina college suspended a student for her gun-related social media post. Now, she’s bringing a First Amendment lawsuit. Her lawsuit ought to succeed, because the federal appeals court with jurisdiction over South Carolina has ruled that depictions of guns are protected by the First Amendment, even in school (such as T-shirts with guns on them).
Horry-Georgetown Technical College suspended Leigha Lemoine for her social media post in September. It began investigating her after a hypersensitive classmate reported a Snapchat post in which Lemoine told someone to “get blasted.” College officials figured out that the Snapchat post was not threatening and that Lemoine did not intend to harm anyone.
But they later decided to suspend her after finding an unrelated Instagram post from before she enrolled in the college, where she was firing a handgun.
“In today’s climate, your failure to disclose the existence of the video, in conjunction with group text message on Snapchat where you used the term ‘blasted,’ causes concern about your ability to remain in the current Cosmetology cohort,” the college told Lemoine, in a letter informing her of her suspension from the college’s Cosmetology program.
Lemoine’s court complaint says that the video, which she later deleted, shows her doing target practice at a friend’s home last year.
The Sun News adds:
Nicole Hyman, a spokeswoman for HGTC, wrote in a statement that the college seeks to maintain a safe environment for all of its students, employees and visitors.
“This suit seeks to challenge the manner in which the College has done this,” she wrote. “While the College respects all individuals’ rights, including their rights to freedom of expression, the College’s priority is to ensure the well-being and security of the entire campus community.”
Despite the apparent safety concerns, it’s not clear whether or not HGTC ever contacted law enforcement about Lemoine’s posts. The lawsuit doesn’t mention any police involvement, and Hyman did not confirm any law enforcement contact before publication.
Lemoine, who was receiving financial aid assistance and expected to graduate during Summer 2025, is seeking a court order to immediately lift the suspension and no-trespass order so that she can complete her current courses.
Other students also have been suspended by schools for posting gun-related content on social media. A Texas school district disciplined a male student after an old photo of him holding a handgun was posted on Facebook. That suspension seems like a violation of the First Amendment under court rulings such as Newsom v. Albermarle County School Board (2003), which ruled in favor of a boy who was told not to wear a T-shirt that depicted three black silhouettes of men holding firearms superimposed on the letters “NRA” positioned above the phrase “SHOOTING SPORTS CAMP.”
Fordham University suspended a Chinese immigrant student for posting an image on his Instagram account, a picture of himself holding an AR-15 rifle along with the caption “Don’t tread on me.” Because Fordham university is private and not bound by the First Amendment, the Chinese immigrant student was only able to sue in New York state court, and the progressive New York state courts upheld his suspension, concluding it did not violate his contractual right to free speech.
