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Sam Houston State University announced Friday that it will not punish Monica Foy, a student whose Twitter comment has infuriated many and led to calls that the university punish her. Foy posted a comment on Twitter, for which she has since apologized, after the execution-style murder of a Texas police officer while he as pumping gas into his patrol car. Her tweet: "I can't believe so many people care about a dead cop and NO ONE has thought to ask what he did to deserve it. He had creepy perv eyes."
Dana G. Hoyt, president of the university, released a statement explaining why the university would not act against Foy, even if "the public's outrage was understandable."
Wrote Hoyt: "The path of least resistance would be to take disciplinary action against Ms. Foy …. But the legal rights conferred on every American citizen and the code of conduct that governs SHSU students says otherwise. A personal comment made on a private social media account, as offensive as it was, remains protected by the First Amendment. Offensive speech is protected speech. As an institution that is responsible for educating generations of students in criminal justice and the order of law, we must stand behind those teachings."
