Rep. David Byrd sued by student claiming he was forced to wear campaign shirt on field trip

Natalie Allison | The Tennessean

A Wayne County High School student has sued Rep. David Byrd in federal court, alleging he was forced to wear a T-shirt supporting the representative in order to attend a field trip to the State Capitol.

The lawsuit, brought in U.S. District Court Tuesday by the student using a pseudonym, has been filed against Byrd, R-Waynesboro, the Wayne County School system and Ryan Franks, principal of Wayne County High School. Franks is also Byrd's nephew.

The plaintiff is a minor, and is seeking "nominal damages for the deprivation of his constitutional rights," attorney's fees and a ruling prohibiting the school from requiring students to wear clothing that features political speech.

Lawsuit surrounding T-shirts for 'Senior Day on the Hill'

Wayne County and Frank Hughes High School seniors attended Byrd's Oct. 15 "Senior Day on the Hill," which Byrd has hosted the last four years for the six high schools in his district.

Byrd worked at Wayne County High School for decades, where he served as principal for eight years.

The complaint alleges that "students were not permitted to decline to wear the shirts" on the field trip, which the student suing says was unconstitutional "compelled and/or school sponsored speech."

A voice message left with students the Friday before the trip instructed them to report to the school cafeteria that Monday morning to pick up their shirts, which had been provided by Byrd, and change into them before boarding school buses bound for the Capitol.

The shirts featured a tristar logo and said "Rep. David Byrd" and "State Representative District 71" on the front. A large "19" underneath "Senior" was on the back, representing their class year of 2019.

The field trip took place as Byrd was seeking re-election to his House seat. He defeated Democrat Frankie Floied in the Nov. 6 election.

Byrd, school district said T-shirts were not mandatory

Though the plaintiff reports that school staff "consistently gave the impression that wearing the shirts were mandatory," Byrd and school district officials previously told the USA TODAY NETWORK - Tennessee that wearing the shirts was not a requirement to attend the field trip, and never had been.

Byrd noted at the time that a boy in one of the group photos he took of the Wayne County High School students did not appear to be wearing the T-shirt.

"We've never made it mandatory," Byrd said. "I don’t know if everyone had one on or not, but it's never been a requirement."

Byrd didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.

Byrd previously accused of sexual harassment

In a statement, House Majority Leader Glen Casada, R-Thompson's Station, noted that Byrd was "re-elected by a landslide margin" of nearly 80 percent.

"Unfortunately, this lawsuit is the latest example of a sad and desperate attempt by Democrats to attack the character of a good man that fully and faithfully represents his community in the legislature.”

Byrd came under fire this spring after a WSMV report detailed three women's sexual assault allegations against him dating back to when he was head coach of the Wayne County High School women’s basketball team.

Two of the victims were 15 and one was 16 at the time they say their then-28-year-old coach sexually assaulted them.

Some Republicans were among those calling for Byrd's resignation after the allegations became public, including then-House Speaker Beth Harwell and Lt. Gov. Randy McNally. Byrd continued in his position and, shortly after the story broke, announced he would seek re-election.

Enough Is Enough Tennessee, a political action committee, formed this fall in an effort to keep Byrd from winning re-election.

Reach Natalie Allison at nallison@tennessean.com. Follow her on Twitter at @natalie_allison.