AUSTIN, Texas — Nine Twitter users and a legal nonprofit called the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University have filed a lawsuit against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

The suit claims that Paxton violated the plaintiffs’ rights to speak in a public forum when he blocked them from his personal Twitter account.

That account, @KenPaxtonTX, is separate from Paxton’s official account for the purposes of his office but he uses it, the lawsuit states, to disseminate official information.  

The lawsuit notes that the Knight Institute has not been blocked by Paxton but the individual plaintiffs named have.

The lawsuit states the plaintiffs were blocked by Paxton after they criticized him or his policies.

Plaintiffs are asking a district judge to make Paxton unblock them and everyone else the Texas attorney general has blocked.

Some of the people who filed suit include a campaign manager for a pro-immigration organization, a journalist, the executive director for a media organization, two attorneys and two students.

One of the plaintiffs, identified as University of Texas at Austin student Joseph Cascino, who is also identified as the president of the Texas College Democrats, says that prior to being blocked he tweeted “Go on and beg for you pardon” at Paxton, referencing Paxton’s outstanding legal indictments and speculation that the attorney general would seek a pardon from former President Donald Trump.

Another plaintiff, Edward Espinoza, who is identified as the executive director of an organization that promotes progressive messages and policies, says that prior to being blocked he replied to a tweet by Paxton asking if the Texas Supreme Court could “stop the holdup on [Paxton’s] 5+ year felony indictment,” adding, “It should be illegal that you’ve been allowed to evade it for so long.”

Paxton earlier issued civil investigate demands to Twitter and other social media and tech firms demanding to learn of procedures those companies use to regulate postings and user accounts. That promoted Twitter to sue Paxton.