Texas Judge Orders Depositions in Case Over Transgender Mailers

Travis County District Judge Jan Soifer ordered an official from the Texas Transgender Student Union to give a deposition by Zoom on Friday and denied the group’s request to dismiss the case. She also ordered messaging company Infobip to respond to written deposition questions. The ruling came late Tuesday, October 27.

The Transgender Education Network of Texas, or TENT, is seeking to identify who sent pamphlets and text messages that referenced its work. TENT says the mailers appeared to come from the organization, triggering a response that involved threats of violence. It also says the texts linked to its website but were not sent by TENT.

The texts began arriving on phones across Texas on October 12, promoting guides for transgender students or offering to answer questions about gender-affirming care. The mailers, sent to homes across Texas starting October 17, were presented as resources for LGBTQ+ youth. They encouraged young people to seek help from a “safe adult” or advocacy groups, and included a section on emancipation.

The Texas Transgender Student Union, registered in Wyoming last month, argued that a deposition would infringe its First Amendment right to speak anonymously. In a written court response, it said it did not plan to send more communications like those at issue. Infobip’s client sent the texts; TENT had sent the company a cease-and-desist letter demanding it stop them and identify the client.

The mailers did not name candidates or campaigns, but their timing near early voting’s opening prompted questions regarding possible efforts to influence voters. West Texas Republican District Attorney Sarah Stogner began a criminal inquiry, describing the mailers as seeming fabrications designed to sway voters. The Wyoming group plans to appeal Soifer’s decision to the 3rd Court of Appeals in Austin.

Court Seeks Answers on Mailers That Triggered Threats Against TENT

A Texas court has cleared the way for TENT to seek answers about communications that invoked its work and brought a backlash that included threats of violence. Judge Jan Soifer on October 27 ordered an official from the Texas Transgender Student Union to sit for a deposition Friday and required messaging company Infobip to respond to written questions.

TENT says mailers from the Wyoming-registered group were crafted to look as though TENT had sent them. The pamphlets, sent to Texas homes starting October 17, described themselves as resources for LGBTQ+ youth and directed young people toward a “safe adult” or advocacy organizations. They also included a section on emancipation.

Texts that began arriving on October 12 linked to TENT’s website while offering guidance about transgender students and gender-affirming care. TENT says the messages were not sent by the organization and wants to identify their sender. Infobip’s client sent the texts, and TENT had demanded that the company stop them and disclose its client.

The group argued that being questioned under oath would violate its right to speak anonymously and said it did not plan to send more such communications. But anonymity cannot answer who is responsible for communications that appeared to borrow TENT’s identity and led to threats. The mailers arrived near the start of early voting, though they named no candidates or campaigns. A West Texas district attorney has opened a criminal investigation, and the group plans to appeal Soifer’s ruling.

Texas Court Orders Anonymous Group to Answer Questions Over Mailers

A Texas judge has ordered a group to disclose information about communications that did not name candidates or campaigns, despite its argument that compelled questioning would violate its First Amendment right to speak anonymously. Judge Jan Soifer denied the Texas Transgender Student Union’s request to dismiss the case and ordered its representative to appear by Zoom Friday.

TENT is seeking to identify who sent mailers and text messages that referred to transgender youth. The group, registered in Wyoming last month, said in a court response that it had no plans to send more communications like those at issue. It plans to appeal Soifer’s ruling.

The mailers went to Texas homes starting October 17 and presented themselves as resources for LGBTQ+ youth. They encouraged young people to speak with a “safe adult” or an advocacy organization and included a section on emancipation. Texts that began arriving October 12 linked to TENT’s website and offered guidance on transgender students and gender-affirming care.

The dispute raises a serious question about the boundary between investigating communications and protecting anonymous speech. TENT says the mailers appeared to come from it and that the backlash included threats of violence; it also says the texts were not its own. Soifer separately ordered Infobip, whose client sent the texts, to answer written questions. The mailers mentioned no candidates or campaigns, even as their timing near early voting drew scrutiny. A West Texas district attorney has opened a criminal investigation.