Higley to sue vape makers
New councilman slams town
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An edition of the East Valley Tribune
INSIDE
This Week
FREE ($1 OUTSIDE OF GILBERT) | GilbertSunNews.com
Sunday, September 27, 2020
GPS posts COVID-19 data by campus BY CECILIA CHAN GSN Managing Editor
NEWS.................................3 How will schools handle football fans?
COMMUNITY......... 19 Gilbert author starts kids’ series.
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ilbert Public Schools went live last week with a dashboard that shows reported positive, active COVID-19 cases on each of its campuses. As of last Thursday, 10 campuses reported a total of 12 cases of the coronavirus – four days after the district opened schools for fulltime in-person learning, though students can choose to continue learning online. The reported cases were - one case for Carol Rae Elementary; two at Desert Ridge High; one at Desert Ridge Junior High; one at Finley Farms Elementary; one at Gilbert High; two at Greenfield Junior High; two at Highland High; one at Islands Elementary and one at Mesquite High.
see COVID page 6
New lawsuit roils Val Vista HOA BY CECILIA CHAN GSN Managing Editor
GETOUT..................... 29 COVID won’t stop Chili & Pumpkin Party.
COMMUNITY....................................... 19 BUSINESS.............................................26 OPINION..................................... 27 SPORTS.......................................28 GETOUT......................................29 PUZZLE.......................................30 CLASSIFIED...........................................31
Students at Settlers Point practiced social distancing as they ate when Gilbert Public Schools reopened for fulltime learning on Sept. 21. (Gilbert Public Schools)
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rewing beneath the idyllic surface of a sought-after community in Gilbert with waterfront homes, an ongoing tug-of-war between free speech and defamation could end up in court. Nearly three dozen residents who have criticized the HOA board overseeing the 900-acre Val Vista Lakes Community are now facing a lawsuit from three former directors. The lawsuit claims the defendants “engaged in defamatory, harassing, and otherwise violative conduct against one or more of the named plaintiffs.” The suit also alleges a Facebook page and
three other social media platforms “became a breeding ground for vitriol, hate speech, religious persecution and outright lies designed to injure plaintiffs.” Resident Steven Nielsen, who with his wife were served the complaint last week, said, “To me the issue is just another attempt to stifle First Amendment rights. We are going just like we did in September of last year where certain board members tried to stop comments about their performance.” Nielsen also questioned the timing of the lawsuit as the community of roughly 2,230 homeowners readies to vote in six new directors on the seven-member HOA board in November and several defendants had indicated their desire to run for election. “It’s almost like (the lawsuit is) silencing
or intimidating them,” Nielsen said. The plaintiffs’ attorney Bradley Jardine declined to respond to Nielsen’s statements. The community, with its picturesque manmade mountain and cascading waterfalls near Baseline and Val Vista roads, grabbed headlines in January. The board threatened to fine nine residents – eight of whom are named in the suit – if they didn’t remove their comments on a private Facebook page deemed defamatory and negative against the directors. The comments began last fall during board elections and included criticism of board decisions. Shortly after the media stories, the board
see VAL VISTA page 10