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Legal Digest Newsletter Archives

THE TEXAS EDUCATORS’ BULLYING UPDATE

INTRODUCTION One does not have to look very far to see the continuing saga of student bullying.  In preparing this article in early April 2014, a Google news search of the term “bullying suicide” revealed yet another student who committed suicide that his parents attributed to bullying. Jeffrey Hulon, Jr., of Pitt County, North Carolina, took [...]

LAW DAWG

DEAR DAWG: Should I be concerned about the fact that our school attorney now has a “tip jar” on her desk?  Am I now expected to tip? What’s the standard for that?  On top of the personal anxiety this creates, I fear it leaves a bad impression. I’m the superintendent and I met with the [...]

GOVERNANCE

Desegregation   THE APPEALS COURT DID NOT ACCEPT THE “FREEDOM OF CHOICE” PLAN SET BY THE TRIAL COURT Case citation:  Cowan v. Cleveland School Dist.,      F.3d      , 2014 WL 1302620 (5th Cir. 2014). Summary: The Cleveland School District was one of many school districts in Mississippi that previously practiced race-based de jure segregation in education.   Under [...]

LABOR & EMPLOYMENT

Discrimination   THE SPECIAL EDUCATION DIRECTOR COULD NOT DEMONSTRATE DISCRIMINATORY EMPLOYMENT ACTION Case citation:  Morgan v. Braswell, 2014 WL 1280499 (N.D. Tex. 2014) (unpublished). Summary:   Valda Morgan, who is African American, was the special education director of Denton Independent School District when the Texas Education Agency (TEA) conducted an audit of the special education department. [...]

PRACTICE & PROCEDURE

Intervening Parties   WERE THE PARENTS ENTITLED TO INTERVENE IN THE SCHOOL VOUCHER LITIGATION? Case citation:  Brumfield v. Dodd, __ F.3d __, 2014 WL 1395663 (5th Cir. 2014). Summary: On August 22, 2013, the United States filed a motion seeking “permanently [to] enjoin the State of Louisiana ... from awarding any school vouchers ... to students [...]

RELIGION

Distribution of Religious Material   PARENTS Editor’s Note: This is the latest ruling in longstanding litigation in Plano ISD.  The decision summarized below is limited to a discussion of whether the elementary school principal was entitled to qualified immunity from claims that the principal prohibited the student’s father to distribute religious material to other adults [...]

SPECIAL EDUCATION & DISABILITY LAW

Disability Discrimination   DID THE EMPLOYEE STATE VALID DISABILITY CLAIMS BASED ON HER ASSOCIATION WITH A DISABLED CHILD? Case citation:  Ruiz v. Edcouch-Elsa ISD, 2014 WL 1385877 (S.D. Tex. 2014) (unpublished). Summary:  Sandra Ruiz was an employee of the Edcouch-Elsa Independent School District.   Ruiz sued the school district after her termination, claiming that she was [...]

STUDENTS

Excessive Force   DID THE SCHOOL’S “RED RIBBON DAY” VIOLATE THE STUDENT’S CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS? Case citation:  Yara v. Perryton ISD,       Fed. Appx.    , 2014 WL 1273808 (5th Cir. 2014) (unpublished). Summary:  Andrew Yara was a Perryton Independent School District high school student when he participated in the school’s “Red Ribbon Day.”  The program was a two-day [...]

MISCELLANEOUS

Expunction of Criminal Records   WHAT IS THE PROCEDURE FOR EXPUNGING CRIMINAL RECORDS? Case citation: Ex parte Harold Cornish, Dkt. No. 05-11-01276- CV (Tex. App. – Dallas, February 14, 2014). Summary: Harold Cornish was arrested for assault in December of 2009.   In April of 2011, Cornish filed a petition to expunge the arrest records, arguing [...]