A federal judge ruled for Ohio State to remove any mention of a former students unenrollment as part of a First Amendment lawsuit. Credit: Daniel Bush | Campus Photo Editor
A federal judge ruled Ohio State must remove any mention of a former student’s expulsion from his transcript as part of a First Amendment lawsuit challenging the university’s decision to unenroll him after posting political content posted in May.
U.S District Court Judge Edmund Sargus, Jr. of the Southern District of Ohio, found that Guy Christensen’s expulsion likely violated his First and Fourteenth Amendment rights and ruled for a preliminary injunction on Wednesday, according to court documents.
David Carey, managing legal director for the ACLU of Ohio and representing Christensen in the case, said in a press release universities should not silence dissenting ideas.
“Today’s ruling underscores one of the most foundational concepts of our Constitution: political opinions may not be silenced or punished merely because they may give offense,” Carey said. “We applaud the court’s ruling not only for its vindication of a student’s right to free expression, but also as a critical reminder to our institutions of higher education.”
Chris Booker, a university spokesperson, said in an email “We’re disappointed in the ruling.”
In the summer of 2025, Christensen, a Palestinian supporter with a social media following, posted multiple videos criticizing events and people surrounding the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Christensen completed his first year as an undergraduate in April 2025, per prior Lantern reporting. After leaving for the summer, Christensen posted two videos on his personal TikTok account, the decision said.
The first related to the deaths of two employees of the Israeli embassy in Washington, D.C., who were shot leaving an event hosted by the American Jewish Committee. One video was posted condemning the deaths. At issue in the case, however, is a video he posted later in that day that was intended to retract those statements.
In the second video, Christensen criticised Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-New York, for Torres’ position “that the conflict in Gaza did not constitute genocide” and his affiliations with Israeli committees, public figures and the Zionist movement, the document stated.
On May 25, 2025, Christensen was sent a letter by Ryan Lovell, an associate vice president, temporarily suspending him based on the university’s Code of Student Conduct. Lovell said in the letter that there was reasonable cause that Christensen’s presence on campus would pose a significant risk of substantial harm to Christensen, others and to property.
If Christensen stepped foot onto campus, he would be criminally trespassing and could be arrested or disciplined further, the letter said.
On May 30, 2025, Christensen received a letter from Melissa Shivers, the senior vice president for student life, stating he was disenrolled from Ohio State based on the code. The documents said the letter explains that Shivers can disenroll, a student if she finds there is clear and convincing evidence that the student’s presence poses a significant risk, similar to the first letter Christensen received.
In the document, Shivers said that Christensen could re-enroll, but would have to provide documents or evidence that he no longer poses a significant risk to the university community.
On June 23, 2023, Christensen submitted documents to re-enroll, arguing he was not a threat and his expulsion violated his First and Fourteenth Amendment rights. Shivers rejected his petition and said he did not submit evidence supporting that he was safe to be around on campus, the court documents said.
Ohio State also noted on Christensen’s transcript that he was disenrolled because he violated the student conduct code, the document said.
In September, 2025 Christensen, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio, sued Ohio State for violating his First Amendment right to free speech when he was expelled for posting protected political speech and his Fourteenth Amendment right to due process for expelling him without giving Christensen an opportunity to be heard, the documents said.
On Jan. 14, after hearing both arguments, the documents said Sargus, Jr. ordered Ohio State to expunge any mention of involuntary disenrollment from Christensen’s academic transcript.
The case remains open, according to the document.
