Justices Differ Sharply on Student Speech

Alaska case could result in more control for administrators.

Washington

The U.S. Supreme Court appeared sharply divided last week on whether a student’s banner proclaiming “Bong Hits 4 Jesus” outside an Alaska high school was protected speech or a message that school authorities could suppress because it ran counter to their policies against the promotion of illegal drugs.

Justice Stephen G. Breyer seemed to capture the court’s concerns as it heard arguments in Morse v. Frederick (Case No. 06-278) on March 19.

“It’s pretty hard to run a school where kids go around at public events publicly making a joke out of drugs,” Justice Breyer told Douglas K. Mertz, the lawyer representing former high school student Joseph Frederick, whose suspension for 10 days in 2002...