Miami, Florida – Attorneys for James Tracy, a tenured journalism professor fired by state university officials in retaliation for his constitutionally protected personal blogging, have filed a reply brief in the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
2018-11-16 Reply Brief for Appellant James TracyProfessor Tracy’s initial appeal brief is available here.
To view Appellee Florida Atlantic University’s response brief click here.
Tracy was a distinguished tenured faculty member in FAU’s School of Communications who taught journalism history, communication theory, and courses on the media’s coverage of conspiracy theories. Tracy received awards for his work, regularly earned excellent reviews, and was a former president of the FAU faculty union.
Despite Tracy’s outstanding academic record, FAU fired Tracy in retaliation for controversial posts he made on his personal blog questioning the legitimacy of the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre. In January 2016, FAU terminated Tracy’s tenured professorship, falsely claiming he had been “insubordinate” for failing to disclose his blogging activity under its conflict of interest outside activity Policy.
For more information about the case and pending appeal:
Appeal Filed Challenging Florida Atlantic University’s Unconstitutional “Outside Activities” Policy