Gibson v. Boy Scouts of America
| Decision Date | 11 January 2005 |
| Docket Number | No. CIV.A. 04-1040.,CIV.A. 04-1040. |
| Citation | 359 F.Supp.2d 462 |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Virginia |
| Parties | Joseph Lee GIBSON, Plaintiff, v. BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA, et al., Defendants. |
Raymond Donald Battocchi, Gabeler Battocchi Griggs & Powell PLLC, Joseph Lee Gibson, P. David Richardson, McLean, VA, for Plaintiff.
John David McGavin, Trichilo Bancroft McGavin Horvath & Judkins PC, Fairfax, VA, for Defendants.
THIS MATTER is before the Court on Plaintiff Joseph Lee Gibson's ("Mr. Gibson," "Plaintiff") Motion for Partial Summary Judgment. This case concerns the revocation of Mr. Gibson's membership in the Boy Scouts of America by Defendants National Capital Area Council ("NCAC") and Boy Scouts of America ("BSA") (collectively, "Defendants"), depriving him of his position as Scoutmaster for Troop 869, without notice that his membership was under consideration for revocation or of the basis for the revocation, or opportunity to reply to charges against him. The questions before the Court are whether there is any genuine dispute of material fact for trial and whether Mr. Gibson is entitled to judgment as a matter of law with respect to (1) his fair procedure claim when Defendants did not notify him that his membership status was under review, did not inform him of the charges against him, and did not give him the opportunity to respond to charges against him and (2) his ultra vires claim when Defendants revoked his membership from the Boy Scouts of America rendering him ineligible to be Scoutmaster of Troop 869. The Court grants Mr. Gibson's motion for summary judgment as to the first count because it holds that no genuine dispute of material fact exists that Mr. Gibson's common law rights to fair procedure were violated and he is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. The Court denies Mr. Gibson's motion as to the ultra vires claim because even if Defendants revoked Mr. Gibson's membership on the basis of his actions as Scoutmaster, Defendants did not act beyond the scope of their own authority as delineated by their bylaws.
Mr. Joseph Gibson became Scoutmaster for Troop 869, sponsored by Trinity United Methodist Church ("the Church"), in 1998. The Boy Scouts revoked Mr. Gibson's Boy Scout membership on February 3, 2003 without any notice to Mr. Gibson that the Boy Scouts had any reasons to consider revoking his membership.
Mr. Gibson had extensive experience with the Scouting Movement as he was himself a boy scout from 1951 to 1962, earned the rank of Eagle Scout, was elected to the BSA's honor society, the Order of the Arrow, and to the position of Chief of the Lodge of the Order, and received the Order's highest honor, the Vigil. From 1957 to 1961, Mr. Gibson served as waterfront staff of the boy scout summer camp and as Waterfront Director.
In 1996, when his son joined Boy Scout Troop 128 in McLean, Virginia, Mr. Gibson volunteered as an Assistant Scoutmaster and registered as an adult member of the scouting movement. The leadership of Troop 869, including Reverend James C. Sprouse ("Rev.Sprouse"), the pastor of the Church, and John C. Kim, PhD, ("Dr.Kim"), the Chartered Organization Representative to Troop 869, accepted Mr. Gibson's offer to serve as Scoutmaster. Mr. Gibson devoted a substantial amount of time and energy to invigorating Troop 869, focusing primarily on aquatic activities such as rafting and canoeing.
In July 2001, while at the National Boy Scout Jamboree with the Troop, Mr. Gibson "flip-kicked" a youth, swinging his lower leg from the knee to the side to contact the youngster on the buttocks with the top of his moccasin. While Mr. Gibson describes this as a "thoughtless act of horseplay," Defendants characterize it as "kick[ing] this scout in an attempt to control the scout's action." Compare Defs.' Response Pl.'s Undisp. Facts ¶ 10 with Mem. P. & A. Supp. Pl.'s Mot. Partial Summ. J. ¶ 10. In response to this action, on July 25, 2001, NCAC expelled Mr. Gibson from membership in the scouting movement. Mr. Gibson appealed the expulsion to BSA's Northeast Region and was reinstated as a member of the BSA on December 11, 2001. The Northeast Region Review Committee and the National Office of the BSA approved Mr. Gibson's reinstatement.
On May 17, 2002, five months after his reinstatement as a Boy Scout member, Peter Petesch, a member of the Executive Board, Council Attorney and Chairman of the Council's standards of Membership Committee of the NCAC wrote to the Northeast Region raising concerns that "established policy was not adhered to in the case of Mr. Joseph Gibson." Defs.' Responses to Pl.'s Undisp. Facts Ex. 4F. Mr. Petesch writes that the decision to suspend Mr. Gibson's membership was made by the Scout Executive of the NCAC, Ron Carroll, "only after careful investigation," and that the regional committee's decision "might have been made prematurely" since it did not consult with the local council level making the original decision prior to rendering a ruling. Id. Next, Mr. Petesch requests that the Northeast Region reconsider its decision. Id. In a May 22, 2002 letter, Mr. Petesch again requests that the Northeast Region "revisit" its decision to reinstate Mr. Gibson, stating that "we feel strongly that the Regional committee did not have full benefit of all the information and facts related to this case at the time they made their decision." Defs.' Responses to Pl.'s Undisp. Facts Ex. 4G. At no time did Defendants notify Mr. Gibson that his membership was under review. Id. ¶ 14.
In the summer and fall of 2002, Mr. Brian Fasci ("Mr.Fasci"), the paid Scouting professional for the local Scout District with the title of District Executive, began receiving communications from concerned parents regarding Mr. Gibson's conduct as Scoutmaster. Aff. Brian Fasci ¶¶ 6-32. As a result, Mr. Fasci set up meetings with parents to investigate their concerns, and in November 2002, met with Dr. Kim, Mr. Gibson, Mr. Bob Reif, the Troop Committee chair, and Mr. Matthew Budz, Field Director for the NCAC Virginia Central Service Area, to report on these concerns. In an email dated November 12, 2002, responding to Mr. Reif's contention that Mr. Fasci was trying to "oust" Mr. Gibson as Scoutmaster and himself as Troop Committee Chair, Mr. Fasci responded, "first off let me assure you that I nor no other persons from the Boy Scouts of America are trying [sic] oust Joe Gibson as Scoutmaster nor you as committee chairman." Pl.'s Ex. 6. In January 2003, Mr. Fasci continued to receive complaints from parents and ultimately contacted Don Reinhardt, advisor to the Standards of Membership Committee; his affidavit states that Mr. Fasci "was unaware of what actions Mr. Reinhardt took" following their communication. Aff. Brian Fasci ¶ 33.
On January 27, 2003, Mr. Fasci met with Rev. Sprouse, Dr. Kim and two other members of the church community. According to Dr. Kim's affidavit, Mr. Fasci informed the group that NCAC would not renew the annual charter of Troop 869 if Mr. Gibson were to remain the Scoutmaster. Aff. John C. Kim ¶ 5. Mr. Fasci, on the other hand, avers that when asked whether BSA would sponsor Mr. Gibson as a Scoutmaster, he responded that the Charter Organization must decide who is Scoutmaster. Aff. Brian Fasci ¶ 34. Furthermore, he avers that he was asked whether he would personally recommend Mr. Gibson as a Scoutmaster, and that his reply was "no." Id. No evidence in the record before the Court shows that Mr. Gibson was made aware that his membership in the Boy Scouts was under consideration at any point following his reinstatement in December 2001.
On February 7, 2003, Mr. Gibson received a letter dated February 3, 2003 from NCAC stating that his membership registration in the scouting movement had been revoked. No basis for the membership revocation is provided in the letter, although the letter states that Mr. Gibson can appeal the decision by sending a letter to the Regional Director within sixty days "explaining your version of the facts." Pl.'s Ex. 5J.
Mr. Gibson appealed the revocation of his membership to the Northeast Region and then to the BSA national headquarters in Texas. On February 7, 2003, Mr. Gibson sent the Northeast Region a letter requesting information about the charges upon which his expulsion was based. He received a response to this letter on March 10, 2003, over a month after his request for information. In the meantime, on March 8, 2003, he had filed a report in support of his appeal. The March 10, 2003 letter from the Assistant Regional Director states:
My understanding of the matter is as follows: 1. You have disregarded the unit committee governance policies of BSA. 2. Your actions have been disruptive to the proper operation of the troop. 3. Your actions have improperly caused parents and youth to leave the troop. 4. You permitted improper youth conduct to occur at troop activities.
Def.'s Ex. 4B. There is no evidence in the record before the Court that Mr. Gibson was provided any opportunity to appear in person or by representative during his appeal before the Northeast Region or to question the witnesses to his conduct, that he knew the date or place of any relevant hearing, or that he was ever informed of the identity of the person or persons who reviewed his appeal.
On April 7, 2003, Ron Carroll, NCAC Scout Executive sent a letter to the Regional Leadership Standards Committee indicating that he did not support reinstatement of Mr. Gibson's membership because "Joe Gibson is NOT fit and does not meet the high standards of leadership of the BSA." Pl.'s Ex. 5N (emphasis in original). On April 15, 2003, Mr. Petesch wrote to Mr. Ronald Rogers, Assistant Regional Director of the Northeast Region stating that the NCAC's Standards of Membership Committee unanimously endorsed the decision to revoke Mr. Gibson's registration with the Boy Scouts. Pl.'s Ex. 5O. On April 29, 2003, the BSA...
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