I expect a lot more of this.
- Click here for the article.
Officials in Llano County must return to the public library system books they removed and allow them to be checked out again, a federal judge ruled this week.
The Texas judge is also prohibiting the officials from removing any more books while a lawsuit remains pending.
Seven library patrons last year sued the county judge, commissioners court, library board members and library system for restricting and banning books. They argue in the suit that their First Amendment rights to access and receive ideas had been infringed when officials limited access to certain books based on their content and messages. The county residents also alleged their 14th Amendment right to due process was violated as the books were removed without notice or ability to appeal.
The books included a book for teens that calls the Ku Klux Klan a terrorist group, Isabel Wilkerson’s “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents” and a comedic children’s book with three stories from Dawn McMillan’s “I Need a New Butt!” series.
U.S. District Court Judge Robert Pitman wrote in an opinion filed Thursday that the plaintiffs had “clearly met their burden to show that these are content-based restrictions that are unlikely to pass constitutional muster.”
Still, Pitman dismissed part of the suit, which wanted county officials to reinstate the library’s previous system for e-book access.
County officials appealed Pitman’s order reinstating the banned books, according to court filings. None were immediately reached for comment. Their lawyer, former Texas Solicitor General Jonathan Mitchell, did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
- Click here for the original case.
For background:
- Llano County.
- Llano County Judge Ron Cunningham.
- Llano, Texas.
- United States District Court for the Western District of Texas.
- U.S. District Court Judge Robert Pitman.
- Amdt1.2.4.1.1 Content Based Regulation.
- former Texas Solicitor General Jonathan Mitchell.
