A federal court judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by two students against Georgia Gwinnett College, saying the school has resolved the main issues that sparked the legal challenge.
Chike Uzuegbunam filed the lawsuit against the college in December 2016 in U.S. District Court in Atlanta, arguing his free speech rights were violated. Uzuegbunam said a college official told him he couldn’t distribute fliers sharing his Christian faith where he was standing on campus. The college had two “free speech expression areas,” which his attorneys described as “tiny.” Another student, Joseph Bradford, who also wanted to preach on campus, joined the case as a plaintiff.
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, in an unusual move, sided against the Lawrenceville-based college, filing a 26-page "statement of interest" in support.
The judge, Eleanor L. Ross, agreed with the college’s motion to dismiss, noting it has since changed its campus speech policy to make it easier for students, guest speakers and organizations to speak on campus.
“The Prior Policies have been removed with no reasonable basis to believe that GGC will reenact them. As a result, there is no practical remedy for this Court to offer Plaintiffs,” Ross wrote.
The ruling was filed on May 25. The case was dismissed without prejudice.
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