University officials lose $4 million in free speech lawsuit to pro-police coffee shop owner

The coffee shop owner is owed $4 million by Boise State University administrators after a jury found that the school officials violated her First Amendment rights in a dispute over her public support of law enforcement.

Sarah Fendley, owner of Big City Coffee, received $4 million in damages from the school's former vice president of student affairs for lost business, reputational damage, mental and emotional distress, and personal humiliation.

In October 2020, Fendley filed a $10 million lawsuit against the university, alleging that administrators retaliated against her for her pro-police views on social media.

The lawyer for the administrators asserted that no retaliation occurred and accused Fendley of attempting to violate students' right to free speech.

In September 2020, Big City opened an on-campus location, coinciding with the nationwide police reform protests following George Floyd's killing in Minneapolis. Fendley's display of a thin blue line sticker near the door of her downtown Boise shop sparked anger among student activists, as stated in the lawsuit.

One student posted on Snapchat that they hope their peers and others who truly support BIPOC students, staff, and faculty do not go to the shop that recently opened.

Fendley, who was engaged to a former Boise police officer at the time, responded to a screenshot of a post with her own public Facebook and Instagram posts expressing her support for police.

According to the suit, university administrators were concerned about the social media "firestorm" caused by Fendley's post and called a meeting with her. However, the meeting was secretly recorded by defendant Alicia Estey, but the recording cut off before the conversation ended, and both sides disputed the outcome.

Fendley's lawyer, Michael Roe, stated that the university terminated her contract due to her support for police, which he claimed violated her free speech rights. Prior to the meeting, administrators were preparing a press release regarding the departure of the business from campus, indicating their intention to achieve a specific outcome.

According to Roe, the senior administration at BSU gave in to a small group of student activists.

The Statesman reported that the campus shop in the Big City closed four days after the meeting.

Estey, the final witness, testified that there was no retaliation against Fendley.

Estey stated that she made the decision to leave and there was no retaliation, as reported by KTVB.

Keely Duke, Boise State's attorney, contended that Fendley was the one attempting to stifle speech. Fendley, according to Duke, sought to have administrators apply the student code of conduct to penalize students for expressing views she opposed. Duke emphasized that administrators maintained impartiality throughout the dispute.

"In court, Duke stated that the First Amendment safeguards everyone's right to express their views, including Fendley's support for the thin blue line, as well as anyone's right to refrain from supporting Big City Coffee."

Jurors deliberated for about three hours before unanimously siding with Fendley.

The administrators plan to appeal the verdict to the Idaho Supreme Court, but Duke did not immediately respond to a request for comment.