University of Delaware v. Murakowski [1]

Maciej Murakowski, a nineteen year-old student at the University of Delaware, created a website in June 2005 on the university's servers that included violent and sexually graphic material. According to the complaint [2] Murakowski subsequently filed, in one post, titled “Talking About Sex,” he wrote about various types of imaginary sexual acts, including:

"The Sociopath . . . On a Friday night, leave her a trail of rose petals leading to a hot bath. Wash her gently, using oils and scented soaps where appropriate. Dry her, then take her into the bedroom for a sensual massage (be careful, you are not kneading dough!) Kiss her and tell her she is beautiful. Slowly let your hands explore her body. Kiss her some more. Then make sweet gentle love to her for hours. After you both climax, hold her and let her fall asleep in your arms. Then set her on fire," and "The John F. Kennedy . . . Position your partner halfway on the bed, facing up, so that her legs are hanging off the edge. You stand facing her, lift her legs, put her ankles on your shoulders, and lean forward as far as you can. Then you kill the President." The piece ends with referring to disposing of the dead body of a sex partner.

On April 20, 2007, Cynthia Cummings, the Vice President of Campus Life at the University of Delaware notified Murakowski that the university had received complaints that his website contained racist, sexist, anti-Semitic, and homophobic statements and that his actions violated the university's Disruptive Conduct policy and Responsible Computing and Use of University Computing Resources policy.

At a disciplinary hearing, the university suspended Murakowski and forbid him from attending classes or visiting his dorm room. Following a required psychiatric evaluation, where he was deemed not to be a threat to himself or others, Murakowski was allowed, after fall 2007, to attend classes after being readmitted, but remained unable to access his dormitory.

On August 1, 2007, Murakowski filed a lawsuit [2] in federal court in Delaware claiming that the university's actions violated his First Amendment rights. He also alleged that the hearing violated his Fourteenth Amendment rights. Murakowski sought reinstatement, credit for the classes he would miss, and punitive damages. 

Both parties filed motions for summary judgment. The university argued that Murakowski's postings were not subject to First Amendment protection because they constituted threating speech and caused disruption. Murakowski argued that the speech did not contain any "true threats."

On September 04, 2008, the court granted summary judgment to Murakowski on his First Amendment claim but found in favor of the university on the Fourteenth Amendment claim. The court's lengthy discussion of the First Amendment issues at stake emphasized that educational institutions may restrict speech in some cases in order to protect the educational environment and the wellbeing of its students. However, the court found that the university had not presented evidence sufficient to show that Murakowski's postings caused such a disruption and posed such a threat that the First Amendment would allow restriction.