Collins v. Taos Bd. of Educ.
| Decision Date | 27 September 2012 |
| Docket Number | No. CIV. 10–407 JCH–LFG.,CIV. 10–407 JCH–LFG. |
| Citation | 893 F.Supp.2d 1193 |
| Parties | Catherine COLLINS, Ph.D., Loretta DeLong, Ed. D., Sandra A. Garcia, Lucille Gallegos–Jaramillo, Ph.D., Jeanelle S. Livingston, Maria Chavez–Medina, Rose M. Martinez, Mary Ann McCann, Elizabeth A. Trujillo, Nadine M. Vigil, and Esther C. Winter, Plaintiffs, v. TAOS BOARD OF EDUCATION, Taos Municipal School District; Arsenio Cordova; Lorraine Coca–Ruiz; Stella Gallegos; Roberto J. Gonzales; Peter Baston; and Ideas Business Technology Integration, LLC, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of New Mexico |
OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE
Sandra A. Grisham, Thaler & Grisham, P.C., Alamogordo, NM, Steven K. Sanders, Albuquerque, NM, for Plaintiffs.
Kevin M. Brown, Ann Louise Keith, John S. Stiff & Associates LLC, Charles K. Purcell, Albuquerque, NM, for Defendants.
THIS MATTER comes before the Court on ten motions for summary judgment, filed by IDEAS Business Technology Integration, LLC (“IDEAS”) and Peter Baston (collectively, “IDEAS” or “the IDEAS Defendants”) against all but one 1 of the elevenPlaintiffs in this case: Motion for Summary Judgment with Respect to Claims of Plaintiff Loretta DeLong, Ed.D. (Doc. 170), Motion for Summary Judgment with Respect to Claims of Plaintiff Lucille Gallegos–Jaramillo, Ph.D. (Doc. 171), Motion for Summary Judgment with Respect to Claims of Plaintiff Nadine M. Vigil (Doc. 172), Motion for Summary Judgment with Respect to Claims of Plaintiff Mary Ann McCann (Doc. 173), Motion for Summary Judgment with Respect to Claims of Plaintiff Maria Chavez Medina (Doc. 174), Motion for Summary Judgment with Respect to Claims of Plaintiff Catherine Collins, Ph.D. (Doc. 175), Motion for Summary Judgment with Respect to Claims of Plaintiff Jeanelle S. Livingston (Doc. 176), Motion for Summary Judgment with Respect to Claims of Plaintiff Rose M. Martinez (Doc. 177), Motion for Summary Judgment with Respect to Claims of Plaintiff Esther C. Winter (178), Motion for Summary Judgment with Respect to Claims of Plaintiff Elizabeth A. Trujillo (179). The Court having considered the motions, briefs, exhibits, and relevant law, and being otherwise fully informed, finds that the IDEAS Defendants' motions should be granted in part and denied in part.
This case arises out of a long series of incidents, most of which need not be addressed here. Plaintiffs are current or former school administrators of the Taos Municipal School District (hereinafter, “Taos Schools” or “the District”) who filed discrimination charges against the District with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in Spring 2009. Plaintiffs contend that their filing of EEOC charges prompted the School Defendants to undertake a series of retaliatory acts against them, including hiring the IDEAS Defendants to perform a false and misleading quality assurance audit of the District, with the goal of publicly maligning them. The IDEAS Defendants seek summary judgment on the only claim asserted against them—Plaintiffs' Count IV for defamation. 2 The factual background underlying Plaintiffs' defamation claims is set forth below.
At the commencement of the events in issue, Plaintiff Loretta DeLong was Taos Schools' Superintendent. The remaining Plaintiffs had each recently entered into a new, two-year contract with Taos Schools to serve in an administrative role: Catherine Collins, as a Federal Program Coordinator; Lucille Gallegos–Jaramillo, a school Principal; Janelle Livingston, an “Exceptional Program” Coordinator; Maria Chavez–Medina, a Health Services Coordinator; Rose Martinez, a Director of Instruction; Mary Ann McCann, a Student Nutrition Coordinator; Elizabeth Trujillo, a Finance Director; Nadine Vigil, a school Principal; and Esther Winter, a Director of Personnel. (It is unclear which, if any, Plaintiffs were new employees, and which were continuing employees who signed new contracts.). DeLong signed each of these contracts on behalf of the school district.
The date(s) that DeLong and the other Plaintiffs entered into these employment contracts is disputed by the parties. Plaintiffs contend that the contracts were entered into on February 20, 2009. The IDEAS Defendants concede that, on their face, the contracts appear to have been signed on February 20, 2009. They suggest,however, that other evidence suggests that the contracts were entered into at a later time and intentionally backdated. See infra at 1198–1200.
On February 25, 2009, Taos Schools held a Board meeting at which certain Board members sought DeLong's resignation, which she declined to submit. Following the meeting, on February 26, 2009, The Taos News reported that “a group of Taos Municipal School District administrators,” not identified by name, had filed complaints against two Board members, School Defendants Arsenio Cordova and Lorraine Coca–Ruiz. (Doc. 171 Ex. C2). The newspaper reported that the complaints “were sent two weeks ago to a variety of state and federal agencies, including the Office for Civil Rights, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Department of Labor,” in addition to State Secretary of Education Veronica Garcia and the American Civil Liberties Union. Id. The allegations in these complaints were not set forth at length, but reportedly included, inter alia, charges that Cordova and Coca–Ruiz used “racial slurs” and engaged in “abusive or threatening behavior” and “circumvented the district's chain of command.” Id.
On March 9, 2009, Taos Schools placed DeLong on administrative leave. The District's proffered reasons for the suspension are not included in the record on the instant motions.
Peter Baston is the Chief Executive Officer of IDEAS, a consulting business with “a particular focus on the integration of information technology into business practices,” including within school districts. . On March 16, 2009, IDEAS entered into a contract with Taos Schools to “conduct an independent program and project analysis for [Taos Schools] through a process quality assurance audit.” (Doc. 170 Ex. C). The contract called for the analysis to evaluate the infrastructure of Taos Schools with respect to its ability to “provide an environment that supports educational excellence”; to “identify problems, issues and weaknesses” with staff functions and operational functions; and to offer “solutions and potential improvements” to any identified problems. Id. at 8.
Plaintiffs, including DeLong, filed EEOC discrimination charges against Taos Schools and individual School Defendants Cordova and Coca–Ruiz at some point between February and June 2009. While Plaintiffs assert that they filed their EEOC charges in May or June 2009—a timeline that is not disputed by the IDEAS Defendants—this appears to be inconsistent with other evidence in the record, including The Taos News' February 26, 2009 report that a group of unidentified administrators brought EEOC charges against Cordova and Coca–Ruiz “two weeks ago,” see supra at 1197, and Plaintiffs' additional allegation that “[a] gag order was issued ... on April 9, 2009 to all administrators who had filed an EEOC complaint ... this action was in retaliation for filing the EEOC complaint.” (Doc. 106 Am. Cplt. ¶ 38).
The substance of Plaintiffs' discrimination allegations are not set forth in the summary judgment record.
On March 9, 2009, The Taos News reported on the “mess at the top” of Taos Schools, following DeLong's suspension by the School Defendants. (Doc. 173 Ex. A4). The paper described how the Board had organized an “emergency meeting” for the purpose of discussing DeLong's status at the District, which “turned into a community meeting where more than 300 people voiced varied concerns about the District, and most attendees seemed to support retaining DeLong.” Id. The article went on to note that Cordova and Coca–Ruiz “have been accused of micro-managing the district and trying to force DeLong to resign,” in a complaint filed with various state and federal agencies. Id. Each of the complainants (including, but not limited to, Plaintiffs) was identified by name and title. However, only Superintendent DeLong's allegations of “hostility and racism” were described. The article further noted that Special Education Coordinator Livingston told the paper that “Cordova had intimidated and bullied her in the past,” but “declined to list specific incidents” with respect to any Defendant's conduct; none of the other Plaintiffs were quoted or mentioned as having been interviewed. Id. The Taos News further reported that New Mexico Secretary of Education Veronica Garcia “threatened to suspend the Board's authority if it does not conduct itself differently.” Id.
On April 27, 2009, The Taos News reported that “a group of 11 administrators” had filed a complaint against the School Defendants with the EEOC. (Doc. 173 Ex. B4). It further identified some of the allegations made by certain members of the group—specifically, Superintendent DeLong, elementary school Principals Vigil and Gallegos–Jaramillo, and Special Education Coordinator Livingston, who, the article briefly noted, “accuses Cordova of breaching confidentiality by talking about specific students and situations.” Id.
On May 13, 2009, IDEAS' contract with the District was amended to reflect the fact that two of the School Defendants—Coca–Ruiz and DeLong's replacement, Acting Superintendent Roberto J. Gonzales—had “raised additional questions regarding...
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