On Friday, IJ won an early victory for Sylvia Gonzalez—a Castle Hills, Texas, grandmother and former city councilmember arrested for speaking out against city officials—when a judge ruled her lawsuit against the city and officials who violated her rights can continue.

Please help IJ vindicate her constitutional rights—and the rights of all Americans—with an online donation today.

Sylvia’s story began in 2019 when she won a City Council seat and helped organize a non-binding petition calling for the removal of the Castle Hills city manager. Incensed by the criticism, city officials retaliated with a campaign of harassment that culminated in Sylvia being arrested and spending a day in jail, accused—absurdly—of stealing her own petition. So, in September 2020, Sylvia teamed up with IJ to vindicate her First Amendment rights by filing a suit against multiple city officials and the city itself. You can learn more about the case in our case video and Deep Dive podcast.

City officials tried to get Sylvia’s case thrown out. They claimed they couldn’t be sued because of qualified immunity, the favored doctrine of government officials when they want to escape accountability for violating the Constitution.

Last week, a federal district court judge denied the officials immunity, ruling that throwing someone in jail for exercising their right to free speech is a clearly established violation of the First Amendment and that Sylvia’s claims against the officials and the city can move forward in court.

I look forward to keeping you apprised as Sylvia’s case continues and we win the legal victories that ensure that government officials are held accountable when they abuse their power and violate the Constitution.

Scott

Scott G. Bullock
President and General Counsel
Institute for Justice

Donate Today