What began as a lowbrow parody of a high school principal goes before a federal appeals court this week.

The case of Justin Layshock, who lanced his principal with an unflattering Internet "profile" created on a home computer, has become a battleground pitting Pennsylvania school administrators against groups that defend free-speech rights.

The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia will hear arguments from each side Wednesday.

Mr. Layshock used his grandmother's computer in December 2005 to create a fictitious profile of Hickory High School Principal Eric Trosch. Mr. Layshock, then a high school senior, made fun of the principal's bulk and implied that he smoked marijuana. Mr. Layshock posted the profile on the Internet social site Myspace.com.

Angered, Mr. Trosch and administrators of the Hermitage School District in Mercer County suspended Mr. Layshock from school for 10 days. After that, they placed him in an "alternative" education program that Mr. Layshock considered inferior.

He and his parents, Donald and Cheryl Layshock, sued the district, Mr. Trosch, co-principal Chris Gill and Superintendent Karen Ionta. They said Ms. Ionta and her staff had no right to punish Mr. Layshock for what he said or wrote while off campus.

The parents also said that the school district had interfered with their right to discipline their son.

U.S. District Judge Terrence McVerry, of Pittsburgh, sided with Justin Layshock on the issue of the punishment, saying school administrators exceeded their authority.

Judge McVerry, though, ruled for the Hermitage district on the question of whether parental rights were violated.

Each side is appealing the ruling it lost.

The Pennsylvania School Boards Association filed a friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of Hermitage, saying schools must have the power to punish students for off-campus actions or activity.

"The authority of school districts to discipline [students] for expressions intruding on the rights of others is crucial to preserving the safety of students and school employees," association attorneys wrote in their brief.

Mr. Layshock, now 20 and a student at St. John's University in New York, is being represented by the Pittsburgh law firm of Reed Smith and the American Civil Liberties Union.

The Rutherford Institute, Student Press Law Center and the Pennsylvania Center for the First Amendment at Penn State University filed briefs on behalf of him and his parents.

ACLU and Reed Smith attorneys said Mr. Trosch was incensed about being lampooned on the Internet, prompting him to seek criminal charges against Mr. Layshock. Hermitage police declined to file charges.

The Layshocks' lawyers said the school district, in trying to reach into homes to control speech, is telling students they must "unquestioningly accept government censorship and restrictions on their constitutional rights."

Witold Walczak, legal director of the ACLU of Pennsylvania, likened this case to the Rev. Jerry Falwell suing Hustler magazine for libel because of a cartoon. The courts ultimately ruled against Mr. Falwell.

If the Layshocks win their appeal, the school district has agreed to pay Justin Layshock $7,500 in compensatory damages and his parents another $2,500. If the district wins, the Layshocks will receive nothing.