Morse V. Frederick

In 2002 the Olympic Torch was coming through Juneau, Alaska and Joseph Frederick, a senior at Juneau-Douglas High School held up a banner that said “BONG HITS 4 JESUS” across the street from campus as the torch passed by. Frederick was suspended by school administrators and sued, claiming that the school could not punish him for off-campus speech. School administrators argued that Frederick was attending the event as part of a school sponsored activity.

In 2007, the Supreme Court determined in a 5-4 decision that the school can restrict student speech viewed as promoting the use of drugs.

Morse V. Frederick is the most recent Supreme Court case that considered student speech relating to their time at school or while attending a school sponsored event.