Douglas K. Mertz, of Juneau, Alaska, for the respondent opened, "This is a case about free speech. It is not about drugs." Chief Justice John Roberts responded: "It's a case about money. Your client wants money from the principal personally for her actions in this case." Mertz emphasized that the torch relay was not school-sponsored; that he had not stepped on school property at all before presenting the banner; that "BONG HiTS 4 JESUS" was intended to be—and was regarded as—a purely humorous message; and that the unfurling of the banner did not cause any disruption. Based on these facts, he concludes, his case "does not present the issue of school authority over student expressions on campus or in a school-sponsored activity".