Father upset after school bans Edwards shirt

DALLAS - The parents of a teenager who wore a T-shirt supporting Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards believe school officials violated their son's right to free speech by forcing him to change clothes.

Paul "Pete" Palmer, a 15-year-old sophomore at Waxahachie High School, was pulled aside last month and told his parents needed to bring him a shirt to replace one that had a "John Edwards 08" logo on the front.

School officials said the decision wasn't political, but rather an enforcement of a new dress code policy prohibiting T-shirts that contain any writing not related to the school or education.

"This is a kid walking down the hall, not bothering anybody, with a T-shirt on that says who he wants to be president," said Paul Palmer, Pete's father. "He has a First Amendment, affirmative right."

The incident took place Sept. 21 after Pete was pulled aside by a school official for wearing all black, another dress code violation. The story was first reported by the Waxahachie Daily Light.

Paul Palmer said he knew that bringing the Edwards shirt to his son would potentially trigger a reaction from administrators.

Palmer, an attorney, has drafted a lawsuit against the school district that he said he may file if the district doesn't change its policy. He said he expects to meet with the superintendent next week.

Nicole Mansell, a spokeswoman for the school district, said the school board strengthened its dress code in May after many students were being pulled from class because of their outfits.

Mansell said that while students can wear buttons supporting political candidates, only T-shirts with school-related content are allowed.

"It wouldn't have mattered ... if it had been Dallas Cowboys," she said.

Palmer doesn't think his son was politically targeted, but rather believes the dress code is "constitutionally over broad."

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a Vermont school district's appeal of a ruling that it violated a student's rights by censoring his T-shirt that used images of cocaine use and a martini glass to criticize President Bush.

The high court went on to rule that schools could regulate student expression if it appeared to promote use of illegal drugs. That ruling involved a teenager in Alaska who unveiled a banner at a school-sanctioned event saying "Bong Hits For Jesus."

But in that decision, Justice Samuel Alito cautioned that schools could not censor political speech.

Palmer said his son's rights are supported by the Supreme Court.

"I don't know what educational goal you're serving by banning speech on T-shirts that's not provocative or not disruptive," Palmer said. "It just seems like it's a petty use of authority."