McDonald v. Hillsborough County School Bd., 86-3497

• Decision Date: 21 July 1987
• Docket Number: No. 86-3497,86-3497
• Citation: 821 F.2d 1563
• Parties: 40 Ed. Law Rep. 137 Edward G. McDONALD, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD, Joe Newsome, Chairman, et al., Defendants-Appellees. Non-Argument Calendar.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Eleventh Circuit

Page 1563

821 F.2d 1563 40 Ed. Law Rep. 137 Edward G. McDONALD, Plaintiff-Appellant,
v.
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD, Joe Newsome, Chairman, et
al., Defendants-Appellees. No. 86-3497
Non-Argument Calendar. United States Court of Appeals,
Eleventh Circuit. July 21, 1987.

Edward G. McDonald, pro se.

Richard A. Nielsen, Richard J. Salem, W. Crosby Few, Tampa, Fla., for defendants-appellees.

Appeal from the United States District Court For the Middle District of Florida.

Before TJOFLAT, HATCHETT and CLARK, Circuit Judges.

HATCHETT, Circuit Judge.

We affirm the district court's holding that his lawsuit brought pursuant to 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983 is barred by the doctrine of res judicata based upon a similar suit the appellant brought in the courts of the state of Florida.

Facts

The Hillsborough County School Board (the board) employed Edward G. McDonald, the appellant, to teach adult inmates at the Hillsborough Correctional Institution. The employment contract was for the school year beginning July 1, 1982, and ending June 30, 1983. Either party could terminate the contract upon written notice.

On January 12, 1983, after six months of employment, the board terminated McDonald for insubordinate, unacceptable,

Page 1564

and erratic behavior. He received written notice of his termination. His request for a hearing was denied. Subsequently, McDonald applied to work as a substitute teacher for the board, but based on his previous employment record, his application was refused. Again, McDonald petitioned the board for a formal hearing, and again, his petition was denied.

On March 10, 1986, McDonald filed this lawsuit against the board under 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983 in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, alleging that the board had wrongfully terminated his teaching contract and wrongfully refused to accept his application for the position of substitute teacher. McDonald also named as defendants (appellees), Paul D'Urso, his supervisor at the Hillsborough Correctional Institution, and Louie L. Wainwright, Secretary of the Florida Department of Corrections.

McDonald's complaint alleged: (1) that the board unlawfully terminated him from his teaching position at the Hillsborough Correctional Institution; (2) that the board violated his due process rights by refusing to grant him a grievance hearing; (3) that the board denied his right to due process by refusing demand for a "formal hearing"; (4) that the board libeled and defamed him in a letter by negligently accusing him of committing an illegal act; (5) that one of the board's employees libeled him in a communication that "falsely and negligently alleges the plaintiff teacher has a 'documented history of failure to follow directions' ..."; (6) that D'Urso, McDonald's...