Judge dismisses Trump lawsuit against Twitter over ban
SME Business
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A federal judge in San Francisco has dismissed former President Donald Trump’s lawsuit against Twitter that sought to reinstate his banned account on the platform, according to a court filing.
Twitter has won the case. It had requested Judge James Donato from the US District Court in the Northern District of California to dismiss the suit.
In throwing out Trump’s case, Donato held that Twitter was not acting as an agent of the US government – as Trump had alleged – when it shut down his account and was therefore not infringing on Trump’s First Amendment rights to free speech.
“The amended complaint does not plausibly allege a First Amendment claim against Twitter,” the decision said. “Plaintiffs’ first claim is dismissed.” Donato also threw out Trump’s other claims, such as that Section 230 – the law shielding tech platforms from lawsuits over most user-generated content – is unconstitutional.
Twitter declined to comment on the suit’s dismissal.
Trump can continue his case. Donato has ruled that Trump can file an amended complaint, but the ruling says that Trump cannot add legal claims.
Since Trump’s filing of the suit, billionaire Elon Musk has sought to buy Twitter for $ 44 billion. Musk has said he wants to restore “free speech” to the platform and conservatives believe Trump could be reinstated under Musk’s ownership of the platform. Trump said he won’t return to Twitter, even if his account has been restored. He also highlighted his latest social media venture Truth Social.
