Resident urges council to restore public comment on Hibbing Police Department Facebook page; mayor to consult legal and police chief

A Hibbing resident told the City Council on Wednesday that the Hibbing Police Department’s official Facebook page had disabled public commenting, which the resident described as the ‘‘deliberate suppression of public speech’’ on a public agency page. The commenter, identified in the meeting as Bridal Falco, said he has asked the department repeatedly to restore commenting, contacted outside advocates and cited court precedent, saying public social‑media pages used by government can constitute public fora. He referenced Davidson v. Randall (Fourth Circuit) as an example of courts finding public officials cannot block or silence citizens for disagreeable comments. Mayor Hajdu responded that the council cannot act on matters raised in an open forum but said he would speak with the city attorney and the police chief (and mentioned Miss Grinsteiner) about the Facebook page to determine what the city can and cannot do under law and policy. Why it matters: The question implicates how a municipal agency uses social media to communicate with residents and whether disabling comments on an official page affects constitutionally protected speech. The resident asked the council to require restoration of public comment access on the department’s official page. Action and next steps: The council took no formal action at the meeting (public forum items are not subject to immediate council action); the mayor said he would consult legal staff and the police chief and report back. The transcript records no formal legal opinion or binding directive at the meeting itself.