Loyola New Orleans student court overturns previous decision barring Turning Point chapter

FIRST ON FOX: A student court at Loyola University New Orleans vacated the Student Government Association's (SGA) decision to bar a newly-formed Turning Point USA chapter from becoming an official campus organization, according to a document obtained by Fox News Digital. 

The decision was made after an appeal from the would-be Turning Point members with help from two of their supportive Loyola New Orleanslaw school counterparts.

The SGA will now review its decision, and vote again on whether to grant TPUSA a charter.

Marquette Hall on the Loyola University campus in New Orleans. (matejphoto/Getty Images)

"The overruling of the SGA‘s decision by the Court of Review is a big win for the students of Loyola University New Orleans," said Ethan Estis, one of the law school students who assisted in drafting the appeal.

"The court clearly saw a deviation from the standard practice of granting RSO status to an organization," he said, "I am incredibly proud of the Loyola University Turning Point USA student leaders, who remained determined and confident in their position — their resilience is contagious. The Court of Review made the right decision here — upward and onward for these student leaders and for all students who have an opportunity for their voice to be heard at Loyola!"

The appellate decision from the school's Court of Review cited deviations from standard SGA voting procedures in the Oct. 15 meeting where the decision was made. 

"The Court finds that an executive session was not formally called, and therefore individuals not specified in the bylaws should have exited the room alongside Turning Point USA Loyola representatives," the decision says. "As a result, the subsequent vote does not comply with open-meeting requirements."

It also shreds two reasons used by the SGA to bar the chapter — student "safety" and "campus climate" — were not valid reasons for opposing official recognition of the chapter, which had met all the school's formal requirements for chartering. 

The court further ruled that the SGA overstepped its boundaries in attempting to require the Turning Point chapter to provide a detailed budget plan, despite acknowledging that the chapter would be funding by the national TPUSA organization. 

Loyola New Orleans did not immediately return a comment request. 

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