Dozier v. Houle

Summary

Ryan Dozier was a student at Yuba College who wanted to share his faith with his peers.  When he tried to hold a Christian sign and hand out tracts on campus, a campus police officer threatened him with arrest because he was outside the campus speech zone. 

Even though Ryan Dozier simply wanted to share his faith by handing out tracts and holding a sign with a Bible verse on it, Yuba College refused to let him do so.  Yuba College required students to get permission to speak 14 days in advance, and if permission was granted, the college allowed students to speak only from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays in a designated speech zone. 

When Ryan tried to share his faith outside the speech zone and without getting the required permission, a college police officer threatened him with arrest for trespassing—even though Ryan was a student at the college.  A few weeks after being threatened with arrest, Ryan received a letter from the college threatening to expel him if he did not comply with the speech zone policies in the future.

Ryan asked Alliance Defending Freedom to help him regain his right to speak freely on campus.  Alliance Defending Freedom filed a lawsuit on Ryan’s behalf and negotiated a settlement with Yuba College that eliminated the speech zone, opened the campus to student speech throughout the day, and ensured that Ryan could speak freely without fear of arrest.  

Alliance Defending Freedom continues to fight for the rights of students like Ryan Dozier so that they can share their ideas freely in the outdoor areas of college campuses.

What’s at stake

The freedom of students to share their faith on campus 

The right of students to be free from campus speech zones

Our role in this case

Alliance Defending Freedom represented Ryan Dozier in a lawsuit against Yuba College, and defended his right to speak freely outdoors on campus.