TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — A federal judge in the city of Tallahassee on Monday granted a motion to dismiss a civil complaint filed by a former member of the Tallahassee Civilian Police Review Board (CPRB).
According to the motion to dismiss, which was signed by U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor, the judge noted, among other things, that the plaintiff, Taylor Biro, “has not plausibly stated a First Amendment counterclaim.”
Biro was removed from the board by a 3-2 vote Tallahassee City Commission December 7, 2022.
When Biro was a CPRB board member, she went to board meetings with a cup that had the phrase “abolish the police” on it.
December 13 of this year Biro sued in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida, alleging that her removal from the board of directors violated her First Amendment right to free speech.
The judge added, “because Biro was an appointed council member, the city commission could remove her for acting in a way that was not in her best interest as the appointing body.”
The judge noted that the city said the board’s goal was to build trust between the Tallahassee Police Department and the community by creating an impartial group of volunteers to make policy recommendations.
The document notes that the Bureau has 14 days from the date of the dismissal to file an amended complaint with the court.
