County College of Morris student suspended, sues after speaking against homosexuality

A County College of Morris student has filed a federal lawsuit against the public school claiming he was suspended when he expressed his "Christian beliefs" against homosexuality and preached passages from the Bible to other students as he paced the Randolph campus.

Morris County resident Kombe Sefelino could not attend classes or be on campus for 11 days after school administrators said he made statements regarded as "hate speech" against the LGBTQ+ community that violated the school's code of conduct and the state's Law Against Discrimination, according to the suit, filed on March 21 in U.S. District Court in Newark.

Sefelino was initially warned by the school's compliance officer to halt his preaching after students complained, but he was suspended after he refused, stating in his complaint that the college was violating his right to free speech under the protections of the First Amendment.

The follower of the Christian religion often voices his beliefs on street corners and sidewalks in and around Morris County and on the school's campus. He reads passages from the Bible and urges passersby to "repent their sins and put their faith in Jesus Christ" in what his attorneys say is done "in an act of love."

"The right of free speech includes the right to speak and demonstrate against homosexuality," writes Walter Zimolong, a Pennsylvania-based attorney. "It also includes the right to engage in speech that offends homosexuals and woke college administrators."

Morris County news Dover man accused of killing man competent to stand trial, judge rules

Sefelino, who is seeking unspecified monetary damages, also asks the court to declare that the college violated his rights under the U.S. Constitution by disciplining him and requests that the college expunge the written warning and suspension from his records.

Kathleen Brunet, the director of marketing and public relations at County College of Morris, said the college is not able to comment on pending litigation.

The lawsuit was filed when Sefelino was escorted off the campus March 21 by the school's Department of Public Safety for "preaching against transgenderism and gender-nonconforming behavior." Attorney R. Scott Fahrney, who represents the college and whose name first appeared in court filings late Thursday, said in a letter to the court that Sefelino was allowed to return to the school on Thursday after he met with the college's dean of students.

Trump-approved legal team

Zimolong, who touts himself as a "perpetual thorn in the side of the progressive movement," filed the lawsuit, because he is admitted to the New Jersey bar, but Sefelino is represented by a nonprofit legal group headed by Stephen Miller, former President Donald Trump's senior policy adviser, and former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows.

Gene Hamilton of Virginia, vice president of America First Legal, who served in the U.S. Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security during Trump's presidency, is seeking to represent Sefelino "pro hac vice," a legal term to allow an attorney to temporarily represent a client in a state where they are not admitted to the bar. Attorneys Nicholas Barry of Tennessee, also part of America First Legal; James Fitzpatrick III of Pennsylvania; and Jonathan Mitchell of Texas are also seeking to assist in representing Sefelino.

America First Legal was founded in 2021 and backed by Trump in an effort to fight against President Joe Biden's attempts to dismantle Trump's initiatives and his conservative agenda, the group says on its website.

Hamilton said in a statement that "woke bureaucrats in colleges across the United States" are more than happy to silence speech with which they disagree. He vowed to "not let this go on our watch."

"For generations, colleges and universities were centers for free speech and the open exchange of ideas. American students were taught to disagree with each other respectfully," he said. "This is no longer true, and many colleges and universities have become centers of censorship."

The Bible

Sefelino often preached on campus with readings from the Bible, including passages from the apostle Paul, who wrote letters to the church at Corinth. The passage from 1 Corinthians is part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible and reads in part: "Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality,nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God."

Sefelino also preached that those who do not repent of their sins will suffer eternal punishment in hell, the lawsuit states, referring to Luke 13:5, another book of the New Testament: "Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish."

A student complained about Sefelino's statements, and he was issued a written warning on Nov. 11, 2022, by Vivyen Ray, the college's vice president of human resources and compliance officer. The letter, uploaded as part of the court filings, warned that Sefelino would face possible expulsion if he continued his "hate speech."

Ray stated that Sefelino was using a "raised voice and bull horn" to ask college students if they are homosexual and made a prophecy that they would go to hell, behavior that she said violates the college's student code of conduct and the state's Law Against Discrimination.

Members of the LGBTQ+ community are a protected class under the Law Against Discrimination and Sefelino subjected others to bias-based harassment, causing a hostile environment, Ray wrote in the letter. Employers are required to take steps to stop harassment and to protect the school, administrators, employees and students, she said.

"We accept everyone here. There is no place for bias at CCM," the letter states. "You should think hard about whether this is the best environment for you."

Sefelino's refusal to stop his preachings led to his suspension on Nov. 28, 2022, and prohibited him from being on campus, attending college events or attending classes through Dec. 8, 2022. His suspension letter, penned by Janique Caffie, the college's dean of students, cites Sefelino for his "direct violation of hate speech against homosexuality and homosexuals."

But his attorneys say he has a right to express his beliefs and nothing he said "fell outside the protections of the First Amendment," stating that he did not use "fighting words," did not threaten or defame anyone, did not incite imminent lawless action and did not utter obscenities. The attorneys point to the fighting words doctrine, which remains a notable exception to speech under the First Amendment.

They also say there is no "hate speech" exception to the First Amendment, and even if there were, repeating statements from the Bible "is not hate speech."

The case has been assigned to Judge Julien X. Neals, a former Bergen County administrator who was first nominated by the Obama administration to fill a vacancy in 2015, but who was blocked by the then-Republican controlled Senate. In 2021, Biden renominated Neals to a different seat, and he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

Lori Comstock can be reached on Twitter: @LoriComstockNJH, on Facebook: www.Facebook.com/LoriComstockNJH or by phone: 973-383-1194.

This article originally appeared on New Jersey Herald: County College of Morris NJ lawsuit: Student sues after suspension