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Public commenter tells commissioners he filed federal lawsuit against Topeka and Shawnee County library officials
Summary
During public comment, Dr. Justin Spiece said he filed a federal lawsuit alleging First and Fourteenth Amendment violations arising from his removal at a library event and named library staff and others as defendants; commissioners did not respond during the meeting.
During the public-comment portion of the Shawnee County commission meeting on Dec. 15, Dr. Justin Spiece told commissioners he filed a federal lawsuit in U.S. District Court naming the Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library and two library employees, and outlined multiple constitutional claims.
Dr. Spiece said the suit names the library, library security supervisor Greg Gaul (in his individual capacity) and an attendee/journalist, Melissa Steeler, alleging viewpoint discrimination under the First Amendment, prior restraint and several Fourteenth Amendment claims, including procedural-due-process and equal-protection theories. He told the board he was removed from a public library event on Aug. 30, 2025, cited for trespassing, and banned for six months; he said he recorded the incident and will bring additional suits against Topeka Police and Shawnee County corrections staff.
Dr. Spiece summarized the counts he said are in the complaint — First Amendment viewpoint discrimination and prior restraint, multiple Fourteenth Amendment claims concerning due process and vagueness, municipal liability, and an alleged conspiracy among individuals he named. “I filed a federal lawsuit in Kansas District Court against the Topeka and Shauny County Library, the library security supervisor, Greg Gaul, in his individual capacity, and loud light worker Melissa Steeler in her individual capacity,” he said.
What happened in the meeting: Dr. Spiece delivered the statement during the public-comment period; the transcript records no formal response from the commissioners or library representatives during the session. The county did not take or announce any action in response to the comment.
Caveats and context: these are allegations presented by a member of the public during a comment period. The lawsuit and the underlying claims were not litigated or resolved at the meeting; the county did not provide a response in the transcript. The article does not assert the truth of Dr. Spiece’s claims and reports only what he stated on the record.
