The Big City Coffee v. BSU trial begins on Wednesday

BOISE, Idaho – The trial began Wednesday against Big City Coffee, which filed a $10 million lawsuit against two Boise State University (BSU) administrators in October 2021.

Over 90 people applied for jury duty – and 12 were selected for the service.

Big City Coffee claims that the BSU administration violated its rights under the First, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. Since 2016, Big City Coffee has had a “thin blue line” emblem on the window of its downtown Boise storefront.

When Big City Coffee opened a store on Boise State's campus in May 2020, a group of students who were part of the Inclusive Excellence Student Council protested.

They said BSU is not promoting inclusivity on campus by allowing a cafe that supports law enforcement to operate on campus — and they said they viewed the thin blue line emblem as a direct response to the Black Lives Matter movement.

Big City Coffee closed its campus a month after opening, claiming that BSU administration had “pushed” them off campus, violated their freedom of speech, and failed to provide them equal protection under the law.

The trial is scheduled to last nine days over a period of three weeks. The court will meet on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The judge will hear opening arguments on Thursday morning.