Attorney fired for touting Constitution settles case against former employee

Florida D.A. Fired for Talking About Constitution Settles Case

Posted on July 8, 2011 at 8:55pm by  Madeleine Morgenstern

KrisAnne Hall was fired from her job at the state attorney's office last year for speaking about the Constitution at tea party rallies. She settled her federal case against her former employer on Thursday. (Courtesy photo)

A former Florida assistant state attorney who lost her job over teaching about the Founding Fathers and the Constitution settled her case for an undisclosed amount Thursday against the Florida state attorney who fired her.

KrisAnne Hall was fired last year after participating in a number of political speaking engagements, including at tea party rallies and on talk radio, in which she discussed her originalist views of the Constitution. Her boss, State Attorney Robert “Skip” Jarvis, said he received a complaint about her activities and gave what Hall described as an “ultimatum,” telling her to choose between her speaking engagements and her job.

“I told him I could not make that choice. I believe that my First Amendment right is my right and I would not stop speaking,” Hall said in an interview with The Blaze.

Hall subsequently filed a federal lawsuit after her dismissal, alleging her rights had been violated and Jarvis had no standing to order her to stop speaking on her own time. Both parties agreed to settle the case Thursday.

Hall would not discuss details of the settlement, except to say she was very satisfied and had her attorney fees paid. She will not be returning to the state attorney’s office.

“I believe strongly that I was within my constitutional right and within Supreme Court precedent,” she said.

Since her firing, Hall said she has “made it a ministry” during the past year to continue to lecture about the Founders’ original intent. She published a book, “It’s Not a Living Breathing Document: Reclaiming Our Constitution” and is working on another one about the Second Amendment. She has also produced a workshop teaching about the Bill of Rights.

“We are sorely lacking in history,” Hall said. “Part of where we have fallen amiss is the fact that we don’t teach history anymore and we have perpetuated this sort of lie that the Constitution is a living, breathing document.”

She estimated that she speaks to about eight groups per month. Her website states, “Civic groups, schools, homeschoolers, churchs…any group, any size.”

“I really believe if we are going to make serious progress in this country we need to teach people,” Hall said. ”Change is not what we need to restore our country…you cannot turn around a ship without a compass.”

“I didn’t choose for this to happen,” she said. “But it’s been a blessing in disguise.”