It’s been almost six months since a University of Central Florida student’s tweet showing how he graded his ex-girlfriend’s breakup letter went viral.
Nicholas Lutz’s tweet included a picture of the letter, complete with red markings fixing the grammar, spelling and syntax errors.
He gave the letter a D minus.
The ex-girlfriend doesn’t go to UCF, and Lutz said he has been suspended from the school.
“Looking back at it now, it’s probably the craziest thing that will ever happen in my life,” he said.
The tweet was retweeted 121,000 times.
“My main goal was never to expose her. It was to show the emphasis on the letter,” said Lutz.
But now, Lutz and his attorney said UCF is using the tweet to suspend him for two semesters and put him on probation.
Lutz’s attorney said it’s a violation of his First Amendment right to free speech.
“That should really, fundamentally, concern people. Not only those who are students, but people who believe in the idea of freedom of expression,” said attorney Jacob Stuart.
At first, the university sent Lutz a letter saying he may have violated the law.
Lutz’s lawyer said the ex-girlfriend has filed a cyberbullying report with the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office, but prosecutors never pursued the claim.
He then got a letter from UCF saying, instead, Lutz’s action violated two portions of the university’s code of conduct: disruption and cyberbullying.
“If they can do that to me, it can happen to almost anybody. That’s upsetting,” said Lutz.
Lutz is appealing the school’s decision and is standing by his tweet.
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