In this week’s edition of P.S., we include coverage of two pro bono cases. First, SMU’s First Amendment Clinic and O’Melveny & Myers teamed up to secure a $290,000 settlement and a permanent injunction against mail censorship at a Texas jail. Second, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett joined a coalition of civil liberties groups in a new lawsuit challenging Ten Commandments Displays in Texas classrooms. In Dallas, the Hispanic Bar Association prepares to celebrate its 20th Anniversary Noche de Luz Gala. And, shoppers, get excited. Jewelry brand Kendra Scott and luxury clothing store St. John Dallas Boutique are each hosting benefit events to raise funds for legal aid services across Texas.
SMU First Amendment Clinic, O’Melveny Reach Settlement with Texas Jail Over Mail Censorship
Grayson County officials have agreed to a legal settlement, including a court-ordered permanent injunction and a $290,000 payment, following a lawsuit over the jail’s former procedures of censoring reading materials and correspondence mailed to inmates.
The suit, brought by the Florida-based Human Rights Defense Center and represented on a pro bono basis by SMU’s Dedman School of Law and O’Melveny & Myers, alleged violations of the First and Fourteenth Amendments.
The federal lawsuit, filed in September 2024, challenged the Grayson County Jail’s practice of refusing to deliver books, magazines and mail sent by HRDC to pretrial detainees and other inmates. Mail was routinely returned with markings like “No Books,” “Not Allowed,” “No Staples” or simply “Refused,” according to court filings.
“The permanent injunction and monetary settlement here should send a signal to jails across Texas that book and literature bans are not acceptable anywhere,” Peter Steffensen, assistant director of SMU’s First Amendment Clinic, said in a news release. “We were thrilled to represent HRDC and work with the experienced team at O’Melveny to obtain this important result.”
HRDC, a nonprofit prisoners’ rights advocacy group, said the jail’s censorship denied inmates access to its publications — Prison Legal News and Criminal Legal News — as well as educational books and legal resources. The organization said it was given no explanation for the rejections and no opportunity to appeal them.
“HRDC’s books and magazines inform prisoners about educational opportunities, their constitutional rights, and provide a means for self-improvement while incarcerated,” HRDC Litigation Director Jonathan Picard said. “Banning those publications from reaching those who are in jail is an affront to the First Amendment, as well as counterproductive to the goals of security and rehabilitation. The court’s order will have an enormously positive effect on the lives of many people.”
Following initial court hearings, Grayson County jail officials announced plans to revise their mail policies. On March 13, U.S. District Court Judge Amos L. Mazzant entered a stipulated order for permanent injunction, preventing the jail from withholding any materials sent by HRDC — except in cases where content-based restrictions are legally justified and due process protections are followed.
As part of the mediated settlement, Grayson County also agreed to pay $290,000 to cover HRDC’s legal costs, damages and attorney’s fees.
“We are pleased with the outcome of this case and that prisoners in the Grayson County jail can now receive books and magazines from publishers, consistent with the Constitution,” said Paul Wright, executive director at HRDC.
The defendants were represented by James C. Tidwell of Wolfe, Tidwell & McCoy in Sherman. Tidwell did not respond to requests for comment.
HRDC was also represented by Don Olmos, Frances Mackay and Brandon Duke of O’Melveny & Myers, as well as Thomas Leatherbury of SMU Dedman School of Law and students.
Simpson Thacher Joins Fight Against Ten Commandments Classroom Displays in Texas
Wall Street law firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett is going to court on behalf of Texas families fighting to keep religion out of public school classrooms.
Working pro bono, Simpson Thacher attorneys from New York and Washington, D.C., have joined a coalition of civil liberties groups in a new federal lawsuit that challenges school districts across Texas that have displayed, or are preparing to display, the Ten Commandments in classrooms.
The lawsuit is Cribbs Ringer v. Comal Independent School District and names the additional independent school districts: Georgetown, Conroe, Flour Bluff, Fort Worth, Arlington, McKinney, Frisco, Northwest, Azle, Rockwall, Lovejoy, Mansfield and McAllen. The plaintiffs represent a broad spectrum of religious and nonreligious backgrounds.
The suit, filed this week in San Antonio, follows a recent federal ruling in Rabbi Nathan v. Alamo Heights Independent School District that declared the state’s new mandate, Senate Bill 10, “plainly unconstitutional.” Despite that ruling, some schools have begun hanging the Biblical texts.
“This lawsuit, brought on behalf of a new group of Texas families, underscores a critical principle: public schools across the state must uphold — not undermine — the constitutional protections afforded to every student,” said Jon Youngwood, global co-chair of the litigation department at Simpson Thacher. “As multiple courts have reaffirmed, the First Amendment safeguards the rights of individuals to choose whether and how they engage with religion, and that protection extends to every classroom.”
Simpson Thacher is representing the plaintiffs in both cases on a pro bono basis, along with the Freedom From Religion Foundation, the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
20th Anniversary Platinum Noche de Luz Gala
The Dallas Hispanic Bar Association and the Dallas Hispanic Bar Foundation are hosting their 20th Anniversary Platinum Noche de Luz Gala this Saturday, benefitting hallmark pipeline initiatives of the association, including law school scholarships, the Dallas Latina Leadership Program and the Judicial Externship Program.
The gala is being held at the Joule Hotel in downtown Dallas. Tickets are still available for purchase at this website.
The following companies, law firms and public officials are sponsors:
Platinum sponsors
Haynes Boone
Bell Nunnally
Gold sponsors
Dorsey + Whitney
Thomas J. Henry
Toyota Financial Services
Silver Sponsor
Linebarger Attorneys at Law
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, Weil
Greenberg Traurig
Nuestro Campeón Attorney Javier Perez
Bronze sponsor
Dallas Bar Association
Hamilton Wingo Personal Injury Firm
Cozen O’Connor
Thompson Coburn
Husch Blackwell
Toyota
Small firm
Texas A&M University School of Law
Vistra
SMU Dedman School of Law
Kastly Law
Public officials
Hon. Monica Lira Bravo
Hon. Hector Garza
Hon. Maria Aceves
Hon. Martin Hoffman
Priscilla Villarreal, judicial candidate
Cynthia Garza, judicial candidate
Supporting sponsors
Galloway Johnson Thompkins Burr & Smith
Mainstay Legal Discovery Services
Proparazzi Photo Booths
Kendra Scott Partners with Texas RioGrande Legal Aid
Jewelry brand Kendra Scott is teaming up with Texas RioGrande Legal Aid to support access to justice. During a special two-day profit-sharing event, 20 percent of proceeds will benefit the nonprofit.
On Oct. 2-3, online shoppers can use the code GIVEBACK-JUFKO to direct proceeds to TRLA.
Kendra Scott’s flagship store in Austin will also have an in-person event from 6 – 8 p.m. on Oct. 2, where purchases will also benefit TRLA. The store is located at 1701 South Congress Avenue, Austin, Texas, 78704.
TRLA covers 68 counties across Southwest and Central Texas with legal matters spanning more than 45 civil law areas. The nonprofit law firm has recently been assisting victims of the July 4 Texas Hill Country flood and training lawyers on ways to help with disaster relief.
Fashion Boutique Benefits Dallas Volunteer Lawyers
Shoppers at the St. John Dallas Boutique will soon have the chance to support pro bono legal services while purchasing luxury fashion. The store will contribute 10 percent of sales from a special shopping event Sept. 30 from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. to the Equal Access to Justice Campaign benefitting the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program.
DVAP is a joint initiative of the Dallas Bar Association and Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas. As part of their work, volunteer lawyers host virtual and in-person legal clinics for the general public.
The event takes place at St. John NorthPark Center location, 8687 N Central Expressway, Suite 211, Dallas, Texas, 75225.
Participants are asked to RSVP with DVAP Director Michelle Alden by emailing her at aldenm@lanwt.org.