{"id":127721,"date":"2026-01-22T11:55:53","date_gmt":"2026-01-22T11:55:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/127721\/"},"modified":"2026-01-22T11:55:53","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T11:55:53","slug":"federal-judge-dismisses-sds-lawsuit-against-usf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/127721\/","title":{"rendered":"Federal judge dismisses SDS lawsuit against USF"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/a>A federal judge dismissed the Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society\u2019s October lawsuit on Jan. 9 for failing to explain how the defendants were personally responsible for constitutional violations described in the file. ORACLE PHOTO\/JULIA SAAD<\/p>\n

A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society against USF on Jan. 9 \u2014 marking the latest development in the legal dispute.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The dismissal comes just three months after SDS filed a lawsuit<\/a> that challenged disciplinary actions taken by USF after protests in support of Palestine on the Tampa campus in 2024.<\/p>\n

In the lawsuit, SDS alleged that the university violated students\u2019 First Amendment rights through protest restrictions and sanctions<\/a>.<\/p>\n

U.S. District Court Judge Steven D. Merryday, who serves the Middle District of Florida, dismissed the lawsuit and denied the group\u2019s request for a preliminary injunction, according to the court order<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The judge ruled<\/a> the case did not clearly show how USF President Rhea Law, Director of Student Conduct and Ethical Development Melissa Graham and Dean of Students Danielle McDonald were responsible for the allegations.<\/p>\n

Still, the court order<\/a> allows SDS to amend and refile its complaint by Jan. 30, after which USF would be given a set timeline to respond.\u00a0<\/p>\n

SDS\u2019s legal team \u2014 represented by Collin Poirot, Andrew Stoll and Walker Smith IV \u2014 sent a statement to The Oracle saying the organization disagrees with the court\u2019s decision to dismiss the case and said the lawsuit\u2019s claims are \u201csimple and undeniable.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe will be filing an amended complaint to make sure that [SDS\u2019s] position and legal rights are made clear,\u201d the legal team said.<\/p>\n

Related: USF faces lawsuit from student group over protest sanctions<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the lawsuit, SDS alleged<\/a> that USF violated students\u2019 First Amendment rights<\/a> by imposing protest restrictions and sanctions related to their Palestinian activism.<\/p>\n

From Apr. 29 to Apr. 30, 2024, SDS hosted protests<\/a> in support of Palestine at the USF Tampa campus, where students set up an encampment near Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza during final exam week.\u00a0<\/p>\n

University Police, Tampa Police and the Hillsborough County Sheriff\u2019s Office dispersed the demonstration with tear gas<\/a> and made multiple arrests after protesters remained past a 5 p.m. curfew imposed on Apr. 30.<\/p>\n

After this, USF permanently revoked SDS\u2019s status as a registered student organization, citing repeated violations of the Student Code of Conduct<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

These violations include<\/a> encouraging others to violate university standards and disruptive conduct.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Following the demonstrations, USF\u00a0expelled<\/a> two students \u2014 including former SDS president Victoria Hinckley, just one week before she was expected to graduate.<\/p>\n

Joseph Charry, an international student from Colombia,\u00a0lost his visa<\/a> after his expulsion and was forced to leave the U.S.<\/p>\n

USF also suspended<\/a> two other SDS members \u2014 Saba Indawala and Vicky Tong.<\/p>\n

At the time, SDS members said<\/a> those sanctions resulted in lasting personal and academic consequences.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Before the ruling, SDS asked the judge for a preliminary injunction to pause the sanctions while the case was ongoing, according to the court order<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Still, the judge denied the request \u2014 arguing the group did not provide sufficient grounds for the court to intervene.<\/p>\n

To issue a preliminary injunction, the court must believe the plaintiffs are likely to win and would be seriously harmed without immediate action, according to the Legal Information Institute<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Related: USF students protest university ties to immigration enforcement<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

In December 2024, SDS also filed a 59-page Title VI<\/a> civil rights complaint<\/a> against Law, McDonald and Graham for alleged discrimination based on national origin and association with Palestine.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The university did not respond<\/a> to the Title VI complaint.\u00a0<\/p>\n

SDS\u2019s legal team said USF\u2019s actions toward the affected students have been \u201cunconstitutional\u201d and said SDS will hold the defendants accountable in court and on campus.<\/p>\n

They said SDS will continue to fight for the right of its members and supporters to \u201cadvocate and organize\u201d on campus.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe call on the USF administration to do the right thing and reinstate SDS and expunge the shameful, unconstitutional disciplinary charges and sanctions against its members,\u201d the legal team said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A federal judge dismissed the Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society\u2019s October lawsuit on Jan. 9 for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":127722,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[135,137,136],"class_list":["post-127721","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127721","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=127721"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127721\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/127722"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=127721"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=127721"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=127721"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}