(Tampa Free Press)—The Liberty Justice Center filed a federal lawsuit Thursday on behalf of James Campbell, a North Carolina resident who was forcibly removed and banned from public meetings of the Cabarrus County Board of Commissioners after exercising his First Amendment rights.
James Campbell began attending Cabarrus County Board of Commissioners meetings in December 2023. During the public comment period on April 15, 2024, Campbell, along with other residents, raised concerns about alleged corruption within the local Department of Social Services (DSS) and Child Protective Services (CPS).
His remarks included naming specific county officials, prompting the Board to claim he had violated its public participation policy against “naming names.”
Despite Campbell’s request to see the participation policy, the Board failed to provide it and instead ordered deputies to remove him from the meeting. The Board subsequently banned him from attending meetings for 90 days. Notably, no other speakers who named county officials were removed or banned.
At the conclusion of the April 15 meeting, one Board Member questioned whether the participation policy was legal and acknowledged that, if the policy did not prohibit naming officials, the Board had wrongfully removed Campbell and owed him an apology. Despite these concerns, the Board has yet to provide Campbell with a copy of the policy, even after multiple verbal and written requests, including a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. Instead, the Board only supplied a document authorizing it to create a participation policy, not the policy itself.
The Liberty Justice Center argues that the Board’s actions—removing Campbell, banning him from meetings, and enforcing an unclear policy—violate the First Amendment. The lawsuit asserts that citizens have a fundamental right to free speech and to petition the government without fear of reprisal, especially in public forums.
“Government officials cannot restrict the public’s right to free speech just because government employees don’t want to hear criticism. The First Amendment protects all Americans’ fundamental rights to discuss matters of public concern at public meetings, to criticize the actions of government officials, and to petition the government for redress of grievances,” said Buck Dougherty, Senior Counsel at the Liberty Justice Center. “We are proud to take a stand for Mr. Campbell’s rights, and we ask the Court to hold the Board accountable for abusing the First Amendment to stifle criticism of county employees.”
“The Board of Commissioners violated my free speech so they could avoid public criticism and accountability. But I know my constitutional rights and I’m ready to fight this abuse of power,” said plaintiff James Campbell. “This lawsuit is not just to vindicate my rights—it’s a fight to prevent this Board’s policies from stifling and silencing other Cabarrus County residents.”
The case, Campbell v. Cabarrus County Board of Commissioners, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina on November 21, 2024. Campbell and his legal team are seeking a court ruling to hold the Board accountable for what they describe as an unconstitutional effort to stifle public discourse and suppress criticism of government officials.