Plaintiffs who filed a federal lawsuit alleging that the former president of the Lafayette library board violated free-speech rights at public meetings are moving to expand the number of defendants in the litigation.
Plaintiffs Lynette Mejia and Melanie Brevis, co-founders of the groups Lafayette Citizens Against Censorship and Louisiana Citizens Against Censorship, filed the original litigation in March 2023 in the Western District of Louisiana. They filed the lawsuit as private citizens and not on behalf of the anti-censorship groups.
The original defendants were Robert Judge, the former president of the Lafayette Public Library Board of Control, and Lafayette Consolidated Government. But according to recent court documents, the plaintiffs have moved to add more defendants, including Lafayette Parish Sheriff Mark Garber and deputies Rusty Santiny and Sara Orgeron.
The deputies removed plaintiff Brevis from a Jan. 9, 2023, public meeting even though she did not exceed her allotted time limit, according to the lawsuit.
“Ms. Brevis used her allotted time during public comment period to voice her disapproval of actions taken by the board under defendant Judge’s leadership, particularly the politicization and discriminatory viewpoints held by some board members, whom she identified by name,” the complaint states.
During Judge’s tenure as board president, multiple attempts were made to remove certain books or films from the library’s collection, the lawsuit argues.
“Defendant Judge’s tenure as a member and president of the Lafayette Public Library Board of Control has been fraught with controversy and community dissension pertaining to censorship of books and materials housed in the Lafayette Public Library System,” the complaint says.
Mejia told the Louisiana Record in an email that she and her attorneys wanted to expand the number of defendants to ensure everyone who took part in the alleged First Amendment violations was included in the litigation.
“We feel that this case shines a light on both the individual and systemic disdain, even at the most basic level, of the First Amendment rights of the ordinary citizens who attend these meetings and wish to speak their mind,” she said.
Under Judge’s term as president, he had an excerpt of a Louisiana statute placed on doors to where library board meetings were held, according to the lawsuit. The sign was posted even though federal and state courts have limited the application of the law for decades, the complaint says.
“The Lafayette library board … policies that infringe on our free speech go far beyond posting signs regarding disturbing-the-peace statutes,” Mejia said. “By using law enforcement and arbitrarily enforced rules, the board creates a climate of fear and intimidation, which affects every member of the public, regardless of their beliefs about the board's policies.”
Ultimately, she said, the board should not only rescind its free-speech policies but board members should learn why such policies are impediments to the democratic process.
The library board actions violate both the U.S. Constitution and the Louisiana Open Meetings Law, according to the complaint. They also tend to silence audience members’ opinions that are not in line with those of individual board members, the lawsuit states.
“Defendants’ policies would chill the speech of a person of ordinary firmness,” the complaint says. “Plaintiffs’ speech has been chilled in fact by the actions of defendants. Plaintiffs must and do self-censor for fear of removal, arrest and/or retaliation against them for their fully protected speech.”
Lafayette City-Parish Attorney Pat Ottinger declined to comment on developments in the lawsuit.