Midwest
Dad claims son was harassed by staff for wearing 'Let's Go Brandon' shirt, sues school district
A father has filed a lawsuit against an Ohio school district he claims “punished” his son for wearing a “Let’s Go Brandon” T-shirt to school.
The lawsuit, obtained by Fox News Digital, alleges a teacher and principal at Madison Middle School in Mansfield violated a student’s First Amendment right to free speech and 14th Amendment right to due process when he was punished for wearing the shirt to school several times.
The first incident happened in November, according to the lawsuit, when the boy wore the T-shirt beneath a flannel shirt in a hallway before class had started.
A teacher, identified as a registered Democrat in the complaint, allegedly made the boy button up the shirt to cover the message, telling him, “I know what that means.”
MICHIGAN SCHOOL DISTRICT FACES LAWSUIT AFTER FORCING STUDENTS TO REMOVE ‘LET’S GO BRANDON’ SWEATSHIRTS
A “Let’s Go Brandon!” sign in Grand Park in Los Angeles. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
The next incident happened later in the day, when the boy attended the same teacher’s class.
The student reportedly removed his flannel to cool off, but when the teacher noticed the T-shirt again, she issued the boy a “pink slip” and sent him to the principal’s office for discipline.
According to the complaint, the principal “demanded” the boy wear the flannel for the rest of the day and “never again wear an item communicating the content of this speech.”
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Attendees wave “Let’s go Brandon” banners at a Don’t Tread on Florida campaign event with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in Fort Myers, Fla. (Giorgio Viera/AFP via Getty Images)
A third incident occurred when the student wore the same T-shirt again in January, when the teacher who was involved in the November incidents noticed and pulled him aside and asked, “Do you like offending people?” according to the complaint.
“That’s not my problem, nobody has to read my shirt,” the boy responded, and the teacher allegedly gave him a “dirty look” and walked away.
The principal later met with the boy and his father, Richard Conrad, and claimed the phrase is “code” for a vulgar expression. However, his father argued he does not interpret the slogan that way.
A fourth incident happened when the boy was given detention by the principal for wearing the T-shirt to school again March 24. The school emailed the father about the boy’s “repeated violations” of the student code of conduct, which it said is set by the board of education.
The complaint alleges the school’s dress code is “unconstitutionally vague” and gives individual employees too much discretion in enforcing it.
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Protesters greet a motorcade with President Joe Biden Feb. 10, 2022, in Culpeper, Va. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)
The “Let’s Go Brandon” catchphrase, used by American conservatives to criticize Biden, originated in October 2021.
The phrase originiated during a NASCAR interview and is a G-rated substitute for “F— Joe Biden” chants popular during the COVID-19 pandemic. The explicit saying was recited at sporting events across the country in defiance of the president’s coronavirus mandates.
Conrad’s lawsuit claims the phrase is “a popular expression of certain people’s opinions toward the American media and politics” and is not vulgar.
Madison Local School District Superintendent Robert Peterson told Fox News Digital he was aware of the lawsuit but could not comment on any details since it’s being actively litigated.
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Madison Middle School in Mansfield, Ohio (Google Maps)
In 2023, two students who were prohibited from wearing clothing with the same phrase to school filed a lawsuit against their Michigan school district.
The district and its employees were “censoring students who try to express support for former President Donald Trump or opposition to President Joe Biden,” according to the complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan, Southern Division.
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), which describes itself as “a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to defending and sustaining the individual rights of all Americans to free speech and free thought,” represented the Tri County Middle School students who sued the school district for viewpoint discrimination after they were ordered to remove sweatshirts they wore to school that featured the phrase in February 2022.
In a similar situation to Conrad’s, an assistant principal and a teacher “ordered the boys to remove their sweatshirts” for allegedly violating a dress code while allowing other students to wear other political apparel like “gay-pride-themed hoodies,” according to FIRE.
President Joe Biden speaks in the Rose Garden at the White House Nov. 26, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
“Criticism of the president is core political speech protected by the First Amendment,” FIRE attorney Conor Fitzpatrick previously said. “Whether it’s a Biden sticker, ‘Let’s Go Brandon’ sweatshirt or Gay Pride T-shirt, schools can’t pick and choose which political beliefs students can express.”
FIRE said the incident involving the two students is part of a “pattern of political favoritism” by the school district that it is “wrongly relying on a policy that prohibits ‘profane’ clothing to censor this particular message.”
“When the school district relaxed the dress code for field day, a school administrator ordered a student to stop wearing a Trump flag as a cape but permitted other students to wear gay pride flags in the same manner,” the group said in a press release announcing the lawsuit.
“The slogan exists as a way to express an anti-Biden message without using profanity,” Fitzpatrick said. “A public school district cannot censor speech just because it might cause someone to think about a swear word.”
Fox News Digital’s Andrea Margolis and Kyle Morris contributed to this report.
Stepheny Price is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. She covers topics including missing persons, homicides, national crime cases, illegal immigration, and more. Story tips and ideas can be sent to stepheny.price@fox.com
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Illinois
Man found dead near Chicago Executive Airport may have been killed in crash: police
WHEELING, Ill. (WLS) — North suburban police believe a man found dead near the Chicago Executive Airport viewing area on Sunday morning may have been killed in a crash.
Prospect Heights police said its officers responded to the area of 79 Palatine Frontage Road in Wheeling just after 9 a.m.
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There, officers found a man lying on the ground along the fence. Police said the man, who was unconscious and cold to the touch, was pronounced dead on the scene.
A preliminary investigation indicates that the man may have been hit by a vehicle, police said.
When officers arrived on the scene, there were no witnesses or vehicles that appeared to be connected to the possible crash.
East Palatine Frontage Road at Milwaukee Avenue is closed as police investigate.
No one is in custody. The Prospect Heights Police Department asked anyone with information to call them at 847-398-5511.
Authorities did not immediately provide further information.
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Indiana
Indiana football to visit White House, Fernando Mendoza may skip
The Indiana Hoosiers are on top of the football world and are enjoying the perks that come with being national champions.
One of those spoils involves a trip to the White House to commemorate their achievement later this month, but the most popular player from that team might not be there.
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USA TODAY Sports covered the conflicted decision former Hoosiers and current Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Fernando Mendoza faces about the White House visit.
Mendoza might not attend due to a scheduling issue involving his new team.
“I believe May 11 is the first day of OTAs,” Mendoza said. “If I’m not mistaken, I have the calendar — I mean, I don’t have a calendar, so… If it is on the first day of OTAs, like I said, I’m on the bottom of the totem pole here. I gotta prove myself. I can’t miss practice … I’m a rookie. I don’t think that’s a good look.”
New Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak is sure to love the dedication of his future franchise quarterback, but it’ll be interesting to see if Las Vegas can make an exception for Mendoza should he want one.
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Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti is expected to make the visit to the White House.
Contact/Follow @College_Wire on X and @College_Wires on Threads. Like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of college sports news, notes, and opinions.
This article originally appeared on College Sports Wire: Indiana Football: Fernando Mendoza may skip White House trip
Iowa
Ford’s walk-off slam lifts Cyclones in must-win thriller
AMES — In a must-win scenario, Iowa State prevailed, battling back and forth with the No. 22 UCF Knights. The Cyclones are sitting in ninth place in the Big 12 standings, right behind Utah.
Iowa State fell behind 4-0 but scored four in the bottom of the fourth, then took the lead in the fifth, scoring four more. A blown seventh-inning lead led to another chaotic fight to the finish, with the Cyclones coming out on top 13-9.
“Really proud of the grit, really proud of the way they came back,” head coach Jamie Pinkerton said.
In the fourth inning, as the Cyclones were getting no-hits up to that point, sophomore catcher Karlee Ford had a change of plans. On a 1-0 count, she roped a solo homer over the left-field wall to start a rally.
“I always have the same mentality of just putting the ball in play,” Ford said.
Iowa State then scratched across three straight base hits, scoring one in the process, before senior center fielder Tatum Johnson came to the plate. She wouldn’t disappoint, connecting with the first pitch and tripling to left field, tying the game at four.
The fifth inning was more of the same for the Cyclones. Ford came up to the plate with one out and drew her second walk of the game, bringing up senior leader Sydney Malott. Malott had seven hits in 19 at-bats over her last six games, after a 3-for-29 stretch dating back to April 5.
“I automatically knew Syd [Malott] was going to hit me around,” Ford said.
Malott came through, crushing a two-run home run off the top of the scoreboard in left field, her third homer in her recent stretch.
“It’s definitely ups and downs, and you have to keep a steady mind,” Malott said. “Just trying to do whatever I can for my team.”
Two more runners would score after sophomore left fielder Jessie Clemons drove them in with a single down the left-field line.
When it looked like the game would be over in the seventh inning, with the Cyclones up 8-4, the Knights had other plans.
Junior right-handed pitcher Lauren Schurman came out to the circle to start the seventh, having not allowed a run since the fourth inning after relieving freshman right-handed pitcher Liv Palumbo.
Pinkerton made a defensive change, moving senior Tiana Poole to right field to replace sophomore Hayleigh Oliver.
This decision proved costly as, on the first batted ball of the inning, a deep fly ball to right field was misjudged, resulting in a triple.
This started a rally for UCF, as it reached base in six consecutive at-bats on four singles, one walk and one hit batter, scoring four runs to tie the game at 8-8.
Senior right-handed pitcher Jaiden Ralston came in to relieve Schurman and faced three batters but allowed the go-ahead run to score on a sacrifice fly, giving the Knights a 9-8 lead heading into the bottom half of the inning.
UCF brought in redshirt sophomore ace right-handed pitcher Isabella Vega, who previously threw a complete game and struck out eight Cyclones in game one.
After junior pinch hitter Isabelle Nosan recorded the first out of the inning, senior third baseman McKenna Andrews drew a nine-pitch walk. She was out at second on a Clemons fielder’s choice for the second out.
Johnson and senior shortstop Reagan Bartholomew then drew full-count walks, bringing up sophomore second baseman Kadence Shepherd.
Shepherd roped the third pitch of her at-bat through the left side, tying the game at 9-9.
That brought up Ford, who was 1-for-2 with two walks, including her solo homer that broke up the no-hitter in the fourth inning.
On a 2-2 count, Ford didn’t miss, crushing a grand slam over the right-center wall.
“Karlee Ford’s been clutch all year,” Pinkerton said. “Huge hit.”
For Malott, the moment reflected the team’s mindset throughout the game.
“We just kept fighting the whole game,” Malott said. “No one ever thought we were out of it.”
The win pushed Iowa State’s conference record to 9-14. Utah sits at 9-13-1 after its win against Arizona.
For the Cyclones to make the tournament, they need to win the season finale against UCF and have Utah lose its finale against Arizona.
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