UT Protesters Sue, Allege 1st Amendment Violations - Articles

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Posted by: Azya Thornton on May 19, 2025

Two protesters arrested in 2024 on the University of Tennessee at Knoxville campus have filed a federal lawsuit claiming their First Amendment rights were violated. Siblings Hasan Husain and Layla Soliz filed the joint lawsuit on May 15, one year after the arrests. The suit names the Tennessee Board of Regents, University of Tennessee trustees and UT System President Randy Boyd as defendants. The two were part of a group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators arrested and charged with criminal trespass after attending a pro-Palestine vigil. All were released without having to pay bail, according to Knox News. The lawsuit centers on what Husain and Soliz describe as violations against “nonviolent community members who were not violating any laws,” and alleges that the arrests were intended to intimidate demonstrators. In March, Soliz was awarded $71,500 by the Knox County Sheriff’s Office after the department published her mug shot online without her hijab.