University of Texas at Austin sued over arrests during 2024 pro-Palestinian protests

Two recent University of Texas at Austin graduates and two current students filed a federal lawsuit against the university over their arrests during an on-campus pro-Palestinian protest in April 2024

Arwyn Heilrayne, Citlalli Soto-Ferate, Iliana Medrano and Mia Cisco are also suing the University of Texas System Board of Regents, former UT-Austin President Jay Hartzell, Gov. Greg Abbott, as well as officers for the UT Police Department and the Texas Department of Public Safety.

“These students committed no crimes but endured violent arrests,” said Christina Jump with the Muslim Legal Fund of America (MLFA), one of the groups representing the students. “They have scars — physical and mental — from their experiences.”

The four students allege they were unlawfully targeted because they expressed pro-Palestinian views. According to the suit, they all plan to continue their activism in the future but are afraid of additional retaliation.

“Texas [officials] want to treat people differently based on their views. The law just simply doesn’t allow that,” Jump said. “And we’re glad to help these students fight back against it.”

The national executive director of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, one of the other groups that filed the lawsuit on behalf of the students, said this case is about more than one protest.

“It’s about safeguarding two of the most sacred rights in our democracy — free speech and peaceful assembly,” Abed Ayoub said in a statement.

According to the lawsuit, the students’ First Amendment rights were violated when they faced “unconstitutional restrictions” on their right to protest. The students said violent police tactics during the protests resulted in injuries, trauma and had a long-term impact on their academic and professional endeavors.

Heilrayne, a current student, said when she was observing the protest, police officers rushed at her and knocked her to the ground. She said her arrest “caused significant pain” when officers twisted her arms behind her back to secure her wrists with zip ties. Heilrayne said she told officers the zip ties were too tight, but they ignored her request to loosen them. She said she began to experience a panic attack.

In the lawsuit, Heilrayne claims she heard officers talking about needing to meet a quota of arresting 50 students. She alleged one DPS trooper asked his colleagues whether the students were actually doing anything illegal.

“‘We’ve been asking this question, but what are they doing that’s illegal?’ He went on to ask, ‘What if this was after a game or something? That many people is out … after a basketball game. We do this after the Aggie games?’ His colleague replied, “No,’” Heilrayne said in the lawsuit.

Medrano, Cisco and Soto-Ferate also said they were injured during their arrests. Cisco said an officer removed her hijab, which she did not get back until she was in jail.

All four plaintiffs said they felt compelled to accept disciplinary actions imposed by UT-Austin in the wake of the protests to avoid harsher penalties or interruptions to their degrees and careers.

“They’re in between a rock and a hard place,” MLFA attorney Chelsea Glover said. “Some of them were risking their entire four years of graduation over speaking up and standing up for what they believe was right.”

The students are seeking, among other things, a jury trial and for any compensatory damages to be determined during the trial. They are also requesting UT-Austin reverse the disciplinary actions against them.

KUT News reached out to defendants in the lawsuit for comment. A spokesperson for the university declined to comment but directed KUT News to previous statements, including an April 23, 2024, letter from the Office of the Dean of Students informing the Palestine Solidarity Committee that the demonstration planned for April 24 violated university policies and rules.