A federal appeals court has upheld a Waxahachie Independent School District dress code that banned a student's T-shirt supporting John Edwards' presidential campaign.
School district officials barred 15-year-old sophomore Paul "Pete" Palmer from wearing the shirts to school in September 2007. He sued, alleging that school and district officials infringed on his free-speech rights.
A federal judge in Dallas denied Palmer a court order to allow him to wear shirts displaying political messages to school. In a 15-page opinion filed Thursday in New Orleans, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals concurred.
The three-judge panel says the dress code is "content-neutral" and intended to avert distractions from education. Since dress outside school and message buttons are allowed, the judges ruled that civil rights aren't violated.
