Judicial Watch Sues Barnstable Public Schools for Firing Associate Principal Over Protected Facebook Speech

(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today that it filed a federal lawsuit against Barnstable Public Schools in Massachusetts for violating the First Amendment rights of a former associate principal who was fired over lawful social media posts addressing matters of public concern. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts on behalf of John Bergonzi and alleges retaliation for protected speech in violation of 42 U.S.C. § 1983, as well as breach of contract and promissory estoppel (Bergonzi v. Barnstable Public Schools (No. 1:26-cv-10059)).

Bergonzi is a long-time public school educator who left a tenured teaching position after being hired as an associate principal at Barnstable High School for the 2024–2025 school year. Prior to extending an offer of employment, Barnstable Public Schools told Bergonzi multiple times that no employment offer would be extended unless and until the school district reviewed his social media activity, including his Facebook page, for any issues or concerns. It was explained to him that a social media check was a routine part of the district’s interview process.

After Bergonzi completed the onboarding process, resigned from his prior job, and began work, the school district fired him for Facebook posts he had shared before he was hired. According to the complaint, the Facebook posts addressed matters of public concern, were made in Bergonzi’s capacity as a private citizen, and did not identify him as a Barnstable Public Schools employee.

According to the lawsuit:

As of the December 10, 2024 termination, Barnstable Public Schools had not identified any disturbance caused by [Bergonzi’s] posts. Other than the single email from the individual whose name was withheld from [Bergonzi], Barnstable Public Schools also had not identified any instance in which a parent, student, co-worker, or member of the public raised any concern about [Bergonzi’s] posts, his social media activity, or his fitness to serve as an associate principal. Nor did Barnstable Public Schools identify any concern about [Bergonzi’s] work performance or professionalism.

Bergonzi, the complaint alleges, was fired because his protected speech did not “reflect the values of Barnstable Public Schools. As a result of his termination, Bergonzi has suffered lost income and benefits, reputational harm, emotional distress, and diminished employment prospects.

“Public schools do not get to silence employees simply because they express opinions that administrators dislike,” stated Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “This lawsuit seeks to hold Barnstable Public Schools accountable for violating the First Amendment and for reneging on promises that cost our client his tenured career.”

In November 2021, Judicial Watch filed a federal civil rights lawsuit on behalf of Kari MacRae, a Massachusetts high school teacher who was fired in retaliation for posts on social media objecting to the inclusion of critical race theory in schools (MacRae vs. Matthew Mattos and Matthew A. Ferron (No. 1:21-cv-11917). In June 2025, the Supreme Court of the United States denied Judicial Watch’s petition that challenged a lower court decision against MacRae. Judicial Watch argued the Supreme Court should take up the case as the lower courts misapplied the First Amendment and Supreme Court precedent. (Justice Thomas authored a statement respecting the denial suggesting the Supreme Court give serious consideration to addressing the issue of how to better protect the free speech right for government employees.)

In July 2021, Judicial Watch filed a federal civil rights lawsuit on behalf of Jeanne Hedgepeth, a longtime social studies teacher at Palatine High School in Illinois, who was fired after posting commentary on her private Facebook page during summer vacation in 2020, addressing riots and civil unrest following the death of George Floyd. School administrators cited concerns about “disruption” after receiving complaints—largely from members of the public with no direct connection to the school. Hedgepeth praised Thomas Sowell and other black conservative leaders in one of the posts that got her fired.

In January 2026, Judicial Watch filed a petition for a writ of certiorari asking the Supreme Court to review a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit that upheld Hedgepeth’s firing and that permits public school officials to fire a tenured teacher for political speech made privately, off duty, and far removed from the classroom.

In February 2021, Judicial Watch filed a civil rights lawsuit on behalf of David Flynn, who was removed from his position as the Dedham High School head football coach after raising concerns about biased coursework on politics, race, gender equality, and diversity being included in his daughter’s seventh-grade history class curriculum (Flynn v. Forrest et al. (No. 21-cv-10256)). The case ultimately settled, with the Dedham Public Schools Superintendent acknowledging in a letter “the important and valid issues” raised by Flynn and specific changes in school policies because of Flynn’s complaint.

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