Two University of Florida students have filed a federal lawsuit against the school’s Board of Trustees, alleging that the university violated their First and Fourth Amendment rights during a campus protest in the spring of 2024.
Plaintiffs Parker Hovis and Keely Gliwa filed the 22-page complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida. The lawsuit alleges that the university’s actions regarding their arrests and subsequent three-year suspensions were taken with “malice or deliberate indifference” to their federally protected rights.
The incident stems from a pro-Palestinian demonstration that began at UF’s Plaza of the Americas.
“Plaintiffs, students at the University of Florida (‘UF’ or the ‘University’), engaged in peaceful, non-disruptive protest on campus in April 2024 to express their views on the atrocities committed by Israel in Gaza,” the lawsuit states.
According to the complaint, the demonstrators remained on a grassy area, did not block walkways or buildings, and engaged in activities such as making signs and sharing food. The plaintiffs allege that as the demonstration continued, UF administration and the University of Florida Police Department implemented new rules that were not part of existing university policy.
“In response, the University and its officials created and enforced a series of vague, ad-hoc rules designed to suppress Plaintiffs’ protected speech,” the filing alleges. “These rules were distributed via an unsigned and undated flyer and prohibited, among other things, the building of ‘structures.’ The flyer listed several items as ‘structures’ that are not typically included in the normal definition of that word, such as chairs, benches, and tables.”
The lawsuit notes that the use of tables and chairs was previously permitted in the Plaza.
On April 29, officers approached Hovis and two community members who were sitting in folding lawn chairs and ordered them to remove the chairs, citing the new rules. The lawsuit states that Hovis later returned to the area and resumed sitting in a chair. Following this, campus police and Florida Highway Patrol officers entered the crowd and arrested nine individuals, including six students. Both Hovis and Gliwa were among those arrested.
“Following their arrests, the Plaintiffs were immediately placed on interim suspension by the University and issued trespass warnings, barring them from campus property and preventing them from attending classes or their own graduation ceremonies,” the complaint states.
At the time of the suspension, Hovis was four classes away from completing his bachelor’s degree in computer science. Gliwa had completed all requirements for her master’s degree in biochemistry and molecular biology.
Both students faced charges for violating the Student Conduct Code. Following separate hearings, the Student Conduct Committee recommended a deferred suspension for Hovis until graduation. The University Officials Board recommended a two-year probation for Gliwa, explicitly stating there was no basis to withhold her diploma or ban her from campus.
The lawsuit alleges that UF Dean of Students Chris Summerlin rejected these panel recommendations.
“Without hearing any evidence himself, and without authority to do so, Dean Summerlin found Plaintiffs responsible for all original charges, including those for which the SCC and UOB had exonerated the Plaintiffs,” the lawsuit states. “Dean Summerlin then imposed grossly disproportionate sanctions: three-year suspensions for Plaintiffs Hovis and Gliwa.”
The students appealed the decision. According to the filing, the appeal committee overturned the additional findings of responsibility that Summerlin had added, but upheld the three-year suspensions.
The plaintiffs are now seeking declaratory and injunctive relief in federal court.
“Plaintiffs seek declaratory and injunctive relief to reverse these unlawful sanctions and an affirmation that the University of Florida cannot disregard the Constitution to silence student voices it disfavors,” the complaint states.
Hovis and Gliwa are asking the court to order their immediate reinstatement as students in good standing, rescind all trespass orders, confer Gliwa’s degree, and expunge the disciplinary proceedings from their records. They are also seeking compensatory damages and attorney fees. They are represented by Southern Legal Counsel Inc. in Gainesville and attorney Jonathan Wallace in New York.
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