Judge dismisses pro-Palestinian student groups' suits against Gov. DeSantis

A judge on Wednesday rejected suits against Florida GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis challenging his order that colleges shut down pro-Palestinian student groups in the wake of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that kicked off the ongoing hostilities in Gaza.

DeSantis and the Florida university system determined in October that schools in the Sunshine State must deactivate local Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapters for what they deemed the "National SJP's support of terrorism." The system chancellor issued a formal memo to the board of governors the following month.

U.S. District Judge Mark Walker rejected the suits, determining that the university system had not taken action to enforce the shutdown order and highlighting that the university system chancellor acknowledged the memo's erroneous linking of the local groups with the national organization, rendering it unclear whether the memo would even apply to the organizations challenging it, according to The Hill.

"This Court finds that no actions have been taken in pursuit of deactivation under the Chancellor’s memorandum. And, as this Court has already found, the Defendants with legal authority to directly regulate registered student organizations do not intend to deactivate Plaintiff," he wrote. "Plaintiff has proffered no record evidence demonstrating that the University of South Florida has taken any action based on the Chancellor’s statements on November 9th."

The decision marks another win for DeSantis in court this week, coming the same day that a judge dismissed a suit from Disney, alleging his waged a "targeted campaign of government retaliation" against the company over its opposition to the state's Parental Rights in Education law.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter.