CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Six Northwest Side residents sued Ald. Jim Gardiner (45th) after they were blocked from his Facebook page or had negative comments about him deleted.
U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman ruled that the alderman knew or should have known that blocking users or deleting comments runs afoul of the First Amendment.
The plaintiffs’ attorney, Adele Nicholas, said the issue was that this happened on Gardiner’s official Facebook page.
“What that means is that public officials can’t pick and choose who they want to hear from. They have to have an even-handed approach to moderating that type of forum, the same way they do at something like a City Council meeting, or a town hall or award night.”
Gardiner has stopped blocking people from his page. The judge said he cannot resume the practice in the future.
Now the case goes forward to determine if Gardiner must pay damages. He was already in the spotlight over unrelated alleged ethics violations.
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