A lawsuit against Brewer schools will continue after the death of a conservative activist.
Shawn McBreairty, 53, died June 3. His wife, Patricia McBreairty, will continue the lawsuit as the representative of his estate, according to records in U.S. District Court in Bangor.
It was unclear in the months after McBreairty’s death if the lawsuits he filed would continue with a different plaintiff. His widow will take over the lawsuit against Brewer, while another lawsuit against Regional School Unit 22 was dismissed.
McBreairty sued Brewer School Department Superintendent Gregg Palmer, Brewer High School Principal Brent Slowikowski and Michelle MacDonald, an English teacher at the school, in February. The lawsuit claims Brewer schools violated McBreairty’s First Amendment rights by alluding to taking legal action against the activist if he did not remove an online post about girls’ bathrooms not being safe if males are present. It included a picture, provided by an anonymous source, of a student in a Brewer school’s bathroom.
McBreairty deleted the post because of the threat of legal action.
The lawsuit also alleges the school violated a student’s rights by telling her a petition she was circulating could be considered hate speech. The petition sought to reverse the school’s policy that gives transgender students permission to use the bathroom and locker room that corresponds with their gender identity.
Patricia McBreairty is continuing the lawsuit against Brewer schools because her husband, if he was alive, would republish the post he took down, according to a declaration she signed Friday. She has a desire to republish the post, the declaration said.
She is asking the court to file an injunction, allowing the post to be republished and preventing the school from taking action against her, according to records filed Monday. She also requests oral arguments for the issue.
There are no dates scheduled for a court hearing in front of a judge.
A lawsuit against RSU 22 alleging his right to free speech was limited was dismissed with prejudice Sept. 14 following a settlement, according to court records. No details of the settlement are included in court records.
