The University of New Mexico (UNM) is being sued in federal court for charging “exorbitant” security fees for an event hosted by conservative students.
The Southeastern Law Foundation (SLF) is filing a federal lawsuit against UNM for allegedly trying to charge students more than $5,000 in security fees for hosting female sports activist and former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines as a speaker. filed a lawsuit. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of the university’s Turning Point USA chapter and the Leadership Institute, an organization that helps conservative student groups with event planning.
Mr. Gaines, director of the Riley Gaines Center for Leadership Studies and a former Division I athlete who competed against transgender swimmer Leah Thomas, spoke about his experience competing against transgender athletes and “ He was scheduled to speak as a person advocating for protection. Expanding opportunities for women in sports. ”
Former college swimmer Riley Gaines is sworn into office during a hearing of the House Oversight Subcommittee on Health and Financial Services on December 5, 2023, at the Capitol in Washington, DC. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
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Gaines, asked to represent the TPUSA chapter, told UNM that the event would require a heavy security presence and provided an initial estimate of more than $10,000 for security. did.
SLF sent a letter to UNM before the event warning that imposing security fees and costs based on assumptions about how people will react to someone’s speech violates the First Amendment.
They added that it is “never constitutional” to make such a judgment based on the speaker’s perspective. According to the complaint, the SLF alleged that UNM officials “required plaintiffs to pay for security costs based on the staff’s subjective assessment of the crowd’s potential reaction to Mr. Gaines’ speech. “There was discrimination,” he claimed.
However, despite the letter, UNM billed the Leadership Institute and TPUSA Campus Group for $5,384 in security costs.
The Southeastern Law Foundation (SLF) has filed a federal lawsuit against the UNM Turning Point USA (TP-UNM) chapter for attempting to charge the university more than $5,000 in security fees for hosting Riley Gaines as a speaker. woke up. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of TP-UNM and the Leadership Institute, an organization that supports student organizations with event planning and funding. (Google images)
“The bill states that even though the event was peaceful and only a few protesters showed up with placards, 27 officers were on the scene and several officers were seen loitering. It also indicated that an “arrest team” was on standby. UNM also acknowledged that the university: “We consistently charge higher fees for Turning Point USA events,” SLF said in a statement.
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TPUSA is the only conservative organization remaining on UNM’s campus, SLF added.
Gaines’ presence on college campuses has previously drawn the ire of critics and protesters at her lectures.
Riley Gaines speaks to protesters at Penn State University. (Riley Gaines)
She had previously stated that she had been assaulted. taken hostage for ransom In April 2023, after speaking at an event hosted by the conservative campus organization Turning Point USA at San Francisco State University.
At an event at San Francisco State University, she spoke about her experience playing against Thomas her senior year. The two tied for fifth place at the national swimming championships.
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San Francisco State University Police have suspended the investigation into last year’s hostage crisis and assault.
In addition to speaking about his experiences, Gaines is a contributor to Outkick and host of the show. “Gains for Girls” Out kick
