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A divided U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit ruled that Escambia County school board members may be deposed about decisions to remove library books and classroom materials. The majority said the board members acted administratively in the circumstances of this case, but did not decide whether other legal protections could limit the depositions.
A divided U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit ruled that Escambia County school board members may be questioned under oath about votes to remove library books and classroom materials, rejecting their claim that legislative privilege shields them from depositions. The decision concerns discovery in a lawsuit over the removals; it does not resolve whether the challenged removals violated students’ rights.
The lawsuit was filed in 2023 by book publishers, parents and PEN America after Escambia County officials voted to remove materials at the request of a teacher and the superintendent. The complaint said books were flagged for reasons including “extreme sexual content,” an “LGBTQ agenda,” “race-baiting,” graphic rape scenes and language. Those descriptions are presented in the lawsuit; the appellate ruling addressed whether board members could be deposed, not whether each description was justified.
Two judges on the three-member panel, Jill Pryor and Andrew Brasher, agreed with the district court that the board members could not invoke legislative privilege to avoid depositions in this case. Brasher wrote that the decisions at issue did not resemble the “proposal, formulation, and passage of legislation.” The majority pointed to the specific circumstances: an internal committee had advised keeping the books, and an appeal to the board ended with their removal.
The majority described its ruling as narrow. It did not decide whether other privileges or discovery rules might justify quashing the subpoenas or limiting questioning, and it did not say that every decision to add or remove a book is administrative. Chief Judge William Pryor dissented, arguing that the board’s vote was a public-policy decision and should be protected by legislative privilege.
Depositions Could Clarify Removal Decisions
The ruling allows the plaintiffs to seek testimony from board members about the reasoning and process behind the removals, subject to any further limits a court may impose. That could help establish how particular decisions were made and what considerations influenced them. The ruling itself does not establish that the board acted unlawfully, nor does it decide whether the books should remain available.
For school officials and families, the dispute concerns both access to library materials and the public’s ability to examine government decision-making. The majority’s fact-specific approach also leaves room for different outcomes in other cases, depending on how a book decision was made and what legal protections apply. The decision therefore affects this case’s evidence-gathering without creating a blanket rule for all school book reviews.
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A Dispute With Several Court Tracks
Escambia County’s library-material policies have been challenged in multiple proceedings. The current lawsuit was brought in 2023 by publishers, parents and PEN America. The source report says a federal district judge in Tallahassee previously sided with the county in a separate dispute over whether keeping a book about two male penguins raising a chick violated students’ First Amendment rights. That ruling should not be confused with the appellate decision on depositions.
Other litigation concerns a Florida law governing school library books. The report says a federal judge in Orlando ruled in August 2025 that the law was overbroad and unconstitutional, and that the ruling was appealed to the 11th Circuit. It also describes a separate issue in the Escambia litigation over whether a seven-year-old student should be deposed; the district argued for the deposition, and the child was questioned. These developments form part of the broader legal setting but were not decided by the panel’s ruling on board members’ privilege.
The report also notes that Florida Education Commissioner Henry Mack sent districts a memo directing them to identify shortcomings in their review of instructional and library materials under the 2023 law. Mack said districts must follow state requirements on age- and developmentally appropriate materials and cited Escambia, Clay and Nassau counties as districts that had removed or discontinued titles after reviews. His statements concern state oversight, not the 11th Circuit’s decision about depositions.
““The freedom to read demands accountability.””
— William Johnson, director of PEN America’s Florida office
Scope of Testimony Still Open
The decision permits depositions under the ruling on legislative privilege, but it does not establish how broad the questioning may be. The majority expressly left open whether other privileges or discovery rules could support limiting or quashing the subpoenas. The source report does not specify when the depositions will take place or whether the board members will seek additional court restrictions.
The ruling also leaves the central claims in the underlying lawsuit unresolved. It does not determine whether the challenged removals violated the First Amendment, whether the reasons given for individual titles were accurate, or what remedy the plaintiffs may receive. The source report does not provide the full text of the appellate order or a subsequent case schedule.
Depositions and Lawsuit Continue
The case can proceed with the depositions unless a court grants a request to restrict or quash them on grounds the appellate panel left open. Any testimony may inform the remaining litigation over the book removals, but the panel’s ruling does not decide that dispute on the merits. The next confirmed developments would be court action on any discovery limits, the board members’ testimony and later rulings in the underlying case.
The separate appeal over Florida’s library-material law is another legal track. Its outcome could affect how districts interpret state requirements, but the source report does not provide a hearing or decision date for that appeal. Readers should distinguish those proceedings from the present ruling, which is limited to whether these board members may be deposed.
Key Questions
What did the 11th Circuit decide?
The court ruled that Escambia County school board members cannot use legislative privilege to block depositions about the book-removal decisions at issue in this case. The ruling concerns discovery, not whether the removals were lawful.
Did the court rule that the book removals violated students’ rights?
No. The appeal addressed whether board members could be deposed. The underlying lawsuit’s claims about the removals remain unresolved by this decision.
Why did the judges disagree?
The majority viewed the decisions as administrative, pointing to the specific review process and the sequence in which the books were considered and removed. Chief Judge William Pryor viewed the vote as a public-policy decision that should receive legislative protection.
Can the board members still challenge the depositions?
Possibly. The majority said it was not deciding whether other privileges or discovery rules could justify quashing the subpoenas or limiting the depositions.
Does this ruling apply to every school book-removal decision?
No. The majority said its ruling was narrow and did not suggest that every decision to stock or remove a book is administrative. The result may depend on the circumstances and the legal arguments in each case.
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