Good News Club, et al. v. Milford Central School (533 U.S. 98)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided June 11, 2001 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 533 U.S. 98 · 121 S. Ct. 2093
- Decided
- June 11, 2001
- Term
- October Term 2000
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority author
- Justice Thomas
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome
- Petitioning party won
- Ideological direction
- Conservative
Opinion excerpt
Justice Thomas delivered the opinion of the Court. This case presents two questions. The first question is whether Milford Central School violated the free speech rights of the Good News Club when it excluded the Club from meeting after hours at the school. The second question is whether any such violation is justified by Milford’s concern that permitting the Club’s activities would violate the Establishment Clause. We conclude that Milford’s restriction violates the Club’s free speech rights and that no Establishment Clause concern justifies that violation. > — I The State of New York authorizes local school boards to adopt regulations governing the use of their school facilities. In particular, N. Y. Educ. Law § 414 (McKinney 2000) enumerates several purposes for which local boards may open their schools to public use. In 1992, respondent Milford Central School (Milford) enacted a community use policy adopting seven of §414’s purposes for which its building could be used after school. App. to Pet. for Cert. Dl-DB. Two of the stated purposes are relevant here. First, district residents may use the school for “instruction in any branch of education, learning or the arts.” Id., at Dl. Second, the school is available for “social, civic and recreational meetings and entertainment events, and other uses pertaining to the welfare of the community, provided that such uses shall be…
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