Mahanoy Area School District v. B. L.

B.L., a high school cheerleader in Mahanoy Area School District, Pennsylvania, posted a vulgar Snapchat message off campus and outside school hours after failing to make the varsity team. The school suspended her from the junior varsity cheerleading squad for a year, claiming the post disrupted school order. B.L. sued, arguing the punishment violated her First Amendment free speech rights. The case reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which on June 23, 2021, ruled 8-1 in favor of B.L., holding that the school's regulation of her off-campus speech was unconstitutional. The Court emphasized that while schools may sometimes regulate off-campus speech, their authority is diminished compared to on-campus speech, especially for non-threatening, non-harassing expression.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 8-1 in favor of B.L., holding that Mahanoy Area School District violated her First Amendment rights by punishing her off-campus Snapchat post. The Court declined to create a broad rule that schools can never regulate off-campus speech, but found that in this case the school's interests were insufficient to overcome B.L.'s free speech rights.

Whether public schools may regulate off-campus student speech on social media under the First Amendment, particularly vulgar posts made outside school hours and off school grounds, and what standard applies to such regulation.

The decision significantly limited public schools' authority to discipline students for off-campus social media speech, affirming strong First Amendment protections for student expression outside school. It set a precedent for handling digital speech, clarifying that schools have less power off campus but may still act in certain serious situations such as harassment or threats. The ruling was widely seen as a victory for student free speech in the internet age.