California School Officials Lose Appeal Over Facebook Blocking

California school board members violated the First Amendment when they blocked a couple from posting comments on their social media pages, which constitute public forums, the Ninth Circuit affirmed Wednesday.

Christopher and Kimberly Garnier’s lawsuit presented an issue of first impression in the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. They frequently left critical comments on the public Facebook and Twitter pages of two members of the Poway Unified School District Board of Trustees, Michelle O’Connor-Ratcliff and T.J. Zane, who later blocked the Garniers from posting to their sites.

The board members acted under color of state law when ...