A federal jury on Wednesday found Dallas County Judge Clay Lewis Jenkins and commissioner John Wiley Price did not violate a public comment speaker’s First Amendment rights.
Alex Stein sued the county officials for silencing his freedom of speech and having him removed by security during a commissioners court meeting on May 17, 2022.
Stein’s attorney Jon Gross said he plans to file an appeal for a new trial.
“We are not satisfied with the verdict,” he said.
Federal judge Sidney A. Fitzwater thanked the jury of seven women and one man for their service before dismissing them at about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.
During the public comment portion of the Commissioners Court meeting in 2022, Stein introduced himself as a BlazeTV contributor and began reading excerpts from a 2014 D Magazine article about Jenkins, which included allegations of college misbehavior and possible misdemeanor criminal acts.
Within 45 seconds, Commissioner Price stopped Stein and reminded him of the court rule that states personal attacks unrelated to county business against commissioners are not allowed, which is publicly posted and announced at each meeting.
After security removed Stein at Price’s direction, Commissioner Elba Garcia requested a 15 minute court break.
Jenkins said Tuesday the county has no plans to hold Stein in contempt of court or issue a fine, per county rules, for a past incident.
Stein, a Dallas comedian, has disrupted a number of government meetings, including city council meetings in Dallas, Plano and New York, and has a significant following on social media and YouTube.
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