Support
← All Cases Coverage by Bryan K. Randolph · BrynoDC

Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L.

No. 20-255 SCOTUS · Decided SCOTUS
Argued: Apr 28, 2021 Decided: Jun 23, 2021
The Law · How the Case Works

Overview

Overview

A ninth-grader who didn't make the varsity cheerleading squad posted a Snapchat video from a convenience store on a Saturday, saying the f-word about school and cheer. The school suspended her from the junior varsity squad for a year. The Supreme Court ruled 8-1 in June 2021 that the school violated her First Amendment rights. Off-campus, off-hours speech on a personal device isn't subject to the same school authority as in-school speech. The decision built on Tinker v. Des Moines but clarified: schools have some authority over off-campus speech that substantially disrupts school functions, but a profanity-laced private social media post about disappointment is not that.

The Conclusion

Conclusion

The Supreme Court ruled 8-1 that the school violated the student's First Amendment rights. Schools may discipline off-campus speech only when it substantially disrupts school operations. A private Snapchat expressing frustration about cheer, though crude, did not cause such disruption.

The Record · 1 original document
COURT Slip Opinion (PDF) PDF
CourtSupreme Court of the United States
FiledSep 1, 2020
CL StatusActive
View on CourtListener →

No circuit court data for this case.

Cert Granted -
StatusActive
Filed (CL)Sep 1, 2020
View on CourtListener →
Don't miss the next one
Subscribe on Substack ↗ Watch on YouTube ↗

Docket

CourtListener ↗
SCOTUS TMR-adb1246a Jul 28, 2026

Related Cases (3)

  • McDonald v. Santa Fe Trail Transportation Co.
    The opinion cites McDonald v. Santa Fe Trail Transportation Co. for the historical principle that public schools retained substantial disciplinary authority over students during the founding era.
  • Brown v. Board of Education
    The opinion cites Brown v. Board of Education for the principle that students retain constitutional rights to freedom of speech and expression even within the school environment.
  • Tinker v. Des Moines
    The active case cites Tinker v. Des Moines as relevant authority.
Subscribe on Substack ↗

This tracker is maintained by BrynoDC and is free because readers fund it. Support