Last year, one man surprised the university community when he filed an $8 million lawsuit against the university and several of its top administrators. But the number of defendants has since decreased by two after the plaintiff amended his complaint this month.

The plaintiff, William Maniaci, alleged in the suit that he sustained injuries after being forcefully removed from a panel in Gaston Hall at the Palestinian Solidarity Conference by two Department of Public Safety officers in February 2006. On Sept. 10, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia issued an opinion on pretrial motions, under which Maniaci was permitted to amend his complaint and dismiss Erik Smulson, the university president’s chief of staff, and George Taylor, a DPS officer, as defendants.

According to the opinion, issued by U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly, Maniaci erred in identifying Taylor as one of the arresting officers, and Smulson was dismissed because he had no supervisory authority over the DPS officers. Maniaci had alleged in his lawsuit that Smulson stood idly while Maniaci was being forcefully removed from the panel discussion, and said Taylor dragged Maniaci down the aisle in Gaston Hall before removing him.

“Smulson’s connection to the occurrence was solely in a public relations function and … he exercised no power over the public safety officers,” the opinion said. Smulson was serving as the university’s assistant vice president for communications at the time.

The remaining defendants in the case include David Morrell, former vice president for university safety, Todd Olson, vice president for student affairs, Darryl Harrison, DPS director, DPS officers Roy Eddy and Larry Salley and Georgetown University, represented by University President John J. DeGioia.

In his original complaint, filed on Sept. 20, 2006, Maniaci sued the university for $1 million each for assault and battery, false arrest, and deprivation of the right to speech and assembly, and sought $5 million in punitive damages.

Maniaci, former chairman of the Jewish Defense League, was removed from the Palestinian Solidarity Conference when he repeatedly asked the panelists whether they supported the use of suicide bombing.

According to his complaint filed last year, Maniaci said he was violently removed from Gaston Hall after he repeatedly asked a question to the panelists about whether the PSM supports suicide bombing as a tactic. Maniaci, who said he suffers from a medical condition that requires him to frequently urinate, alleged that he was prohibited from using the restroom for a period of time before being permitted to urinate while a DPS officer held the bathroom door open. Eventually, he was removed from campus by a Metropolitan Police Department officer.

Maniaci alleged that he blacked out the next day and was diagnosed at Walter Reed Army Medical Center with a concussion, a sprained right ankle, contusions to the right abdomen, upper right arm and right wrist and abrasions on his legs.

Maniaci was one of several dozen people who came to campus for the weekend to protest the conference, arguing that the PSM’s policies are anti-Israel.

Georgetown is being represented by three attorneys from Williams and Connolly, LLP.

Thomas Fay, Maniaci’s attorney, said he expects more information regarding the case, including a trial date, to become available this week.

The Office of University Counsel and Maniaci declined to comment.