Weaver v. Board of Educ. of Pine Plains Central School Dist.

• Decision Date: 20 April 1987
• Parties: , 38 Ed. Law Rep. 1099 In the Matter of Bernard H. WEAVER, Jr., Petitioner, v. The BOARD OF EDUCATION OF PINE PLAINS CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT, Respondent.
• Court: New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division

Page 473

514 N.Y.S.2d 473

129 A.D.2d 711, 38 Ed. Law Rep. 1099

In the Matter of Bernard H. WEAVER, Jr., Petitioner, v. The BOARD OF EDUCATION OF PINE PLAINS CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT, Respondent.

Supreme Court, Appellate Division Second Department.

April 20, 1987.

Rowley, Forrest and O'Donnell, P.C., Albany (Mark T. Walsh, Jr., of counsel) for petitioner.

David S. Shaw, Poughkeepsie (Garrett L. Silveira, of counsel), for respondent.

Before THOMPSON, J.P., and BROWN, NIEHOFF and RUBIN, JJ.

MEMORANDUM BY THE COURT.

Proceeding pursuant to CPLR article 78 to review a determination of the respondent Board of Education of the Pine Plains Central School District, dated August 7, 1985, which, inter alia, after two hearings pursuant to Education Law § 3020-a, found the petitioner guilty of certain charges of misconduct, and dismissed him from his employment as a tenured teacher.

ADJUDGED that the determination is confirmed and the proceeding is dismissed on the merits, with costs.

The petitioner, Bernard H. Weaver, Jr., was dismissed from his position as a tenured school teacher following two hearings pursuant to Education Law § 3020-a, upon the hearing panel's findings that he was guilty of multiple charges of insubordination and conduct unbecoming a teacher. Specifically, the charges concerned, inter alia, his refusal to obey a directive by the district superintendent ordering him to cease and desist from residing with a 16-year-old former male student of the petitioner, who was still attending school in the district and who had left his mother's home to reside with the petitioner over the express objections of the mother. The petitioner was also charged with encouraging and assisting the student to leave his mother's home, including waiting outside the student's house with a loaded gun on the night the student was to leave home.

Based on the testimony in the record, the hearing panel's determinations were clearly supported by substantial evidence and cannot be said to have been arbitrary or capricious. We decline to substitute our judgment for that of the hearing panel and accordingly confirm the determination (see, Matter of Pell v. Board of Educ., 34 N.Y.2d 222, 356 N.Y.S.2d 833, 313 N.E.2d 321; Matter of Donnelly v. Carmel Cent. School Dist., 109 A.D.2d 796, 486 N.Y.S.2d 308). Moreover, we do not find the imposition of the penalty of dismissal to be so shocking under the existing circumstances that it should be set aside (see, Matter of Short...