Jenkins v. Louisiana State Bd. of Ed.

• Citation: 506 F.2d 992
• Decision Date: 20 January 1975
• Docket Number: No. 73-2594,73-2594
• Parties: Larry JENKINS et al., Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. LOUISIANA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION et al., Defendants-Appellees, v. Elmer Glynn PITRE et al., Intervenors-Appellants.
• Court: United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (5th Circuit)

Page 992

506 F.2d 992

76 A.L.R.Fed. 571

Larry JENKINS et al., Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. LOUISIANA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION et al Defendants-Appellees, v. Elmer Glynn PITRE et al Intervenors-Appellants.

No. 73-2594.

United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit.

Jan. 20, 1975, Rehearing and Rehearing En Banc Denied March 6, 1975.

Robert P. McLeod, Monroe, La., for plaintiffs-appellants.

Hilry Huckaby, III, Shreveport, La., for intervenors-appellants.

William J. Guste, Jr., Atty. Gen., Reginald Coco, Asst. Atty. Gen., Baton Rouge, La., A. Mills McCawley, Sp. Counsel, Dept. of Justice, Shreveport, La., for defendants-appellees.

Appeals from the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana.

Before TUTTLE, GEWIN and RONEY, Circuit Judges.

RONEY, Circuit Judge:

This suit involves an appeal by six students from a district court order refusing to enjoin their suspensions from Grambling College, a Louisiana state institution. Appellants instituted the action pursuant to 42 U.S.C.A. 1981-1985 and 1994, alleging that the defendants-- the Louisiana State Board of Education, Louisiana State Board of Education President Nix, Grambling College President Jones, and Grambling College Dean of Students Whittaker-- violated their constitutional rights under the First, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments by suspending them from Grambling College for their alleged participation in certain campus disturbances which occurred in November of 1972. It is not disputed that the disturbances occurred. The dispute is over what, if any, was the participation of these plaintiffs in the prohibited acts and whether their conduct was protected by the First Amendment.

The case was tried on the theory that there were two groups of students who were subject to disciplinary action. One group consisted of those students (including Jenkins, Scott, Acorn and Pitre) who sponsored a protest, to be effectuated by a boycott of classes. Because of their involvement in planning, promoting, encouraging and inciting such The district court initially found that the students had not been afforded procedural due process by the College Disciplinary Hearing Board and ordered new hearings. The court granted a temporary restraining order pending such hearing and later stayed the suspensions pending appeal to the Louisiana State Board of Education.

activities, they were held responsible for whatever violation of college regulations occurred thereafter, without reference to their personal participation at the time of the disruptions. The other group (including Aikens and Little) consisted of those students who were personally identified as engaging in a violation of college regulations. There is an overlapping of the two groups. For instance, there is evidence which placed organizers Scott and Acorn at the scene of some of the disturbances.

The case was then tried for approximately one full week in an adversary manner before the Hearing Board. All parties were represented by excellent counsel who fully exercised rights of confrontation, cross-examination, and the presentation of witnesses. Of the students disciplined, six appeal, Scott, Jenkins, Acorn, Pitre, Little and Aikens. ¹ The parties agree that the district court's denial of a preliminary injunction was for all practical purposes a denial of a permanent injunction and that the record is fully developed. We, therefore, review as if from a final judgment, and we are bound by the clearly erroneous test of F.R.Civ.P. 52(a). The case was decided by the district court judge without a jury upon an administrative record which is only documentary evidence. Thus, the appellants' burden of showing that the trial court's findings of fact are clearly erroneous is not as heavy as it would be if the case had turned on the credibility of witnesses appearing before the trial judge. Sicula Oceanica v. Wilmar Marine Engineering & Sales Corp., 413 F.2d 1332, 1333 (5th Cir. 1969). We should not, however, overturn the decision of the trial court unless we are left with the definite and firm conviction that a mistake has been made. United States v. United States Gypsum Co., 333 U.S. 364, 395, 68 S.Ct. 525, 92 L.Ed. 746 (1948); Volkswagen of America, Inc. v. Jahre, 472 F.2d 557, 559 (5th Cir. 1973). After a full review of the record, we affirm the judgment of the district court denying injunctive and supplemental relief, except as it is applicable to Little.

I. The Factual Background

A. Prelude to the Disturbances

During the course of the 1972-73 school year certain grievances and complaints arose among the students at Grambling and other Louisiana colleges. In late October 1972, appellants Scott and Jenkins traveled to the Southern University campus in Baton Rouge and announced their support of a student protest there. Upon their return to Grambling they discussed with fellow students what had occurred at Southern and, assisted by appellant Acorn, spread the word that the first public meeting for a boycott of classes at Grambling would be held at 9:00 a.m. on November 1, 1972. The three tried to rally support for the boycott by addressing students at a Halloween Party in the Student Union Building and by chanting 'organize' and 'unite' in the women's dormitory area.

At 9:00 a.m. on November 1, a large group of students assembled in the college auditorium to discuss their complaints against the Grambling administration. Scott, the president of the student body, introduced various speakers, including Jenkins and Acorn, who urged the students to boycott classes as a means of expressing their grievances. Appellant Pitre was in attendance at this meeting but there is a conflict in evidence as to whether he was on stage or in the audience. No kind of violent activity was discussed at this meeting.

At approximately 10:00 a.m. a group of 150 to 200 students walked the few blocks from the auditorium to the administration building, where a list of grievances was presented to Grambling Around 2:00 p.m. Scott and Acorn, among other students, met with President Jones to receive his response to the grievances. The administration witnesses complained that both students acted 'impatient' with the progress of the meeting and left before its completion. The students admitted leaving early, but justified their departure on their having to report back to the remainder of the students who were in the auditorium for a meeting previously called for 3:00 p.m.

President Jones. The students came to the administration building en masse, briefly impeded access to the building, but upon request opened up a pathway to provide ingress and egress. President Jones asked some of the students to come to his conference from to discuss the matter with him. He informed them that he would have to call a meeting of his administration prior to giving any concrete response to the grievances listed in the document presented to him. While this meeting was in progress, Acorn instructed other students to come inside the administration building, which crowded the halls and the President's office momentarily, but again, upon request the students departed the building and waited outside. The students meeting with President Jones agreed to return later in the day to receive his response to the grievances. Except for the temporary occupation of the space in front of the administration building and the momentary overcrowding inside, all activity at the administration building was nonviolent and without incident.

At the 3:00 p.m. meeting Acorn informed the other students what response had been given by the administration to the grievances. She stated her dissatisfaction with the meeting and the administration's sincerity. At this meeting Dean Whittaker tried to speak and present the administration's position but was heckled by the students, despite Acorn's advice to 'Let the dean speak.'

One additional meeting was held in the auditorium at 10:00 p.m. on the evening of November 1. At this meeting there was a discussion and debate as to whether it would be proper to try to stop the buses which were scheduled to leave early the next morning to carry the Grambling football team and band to Dallas to catch a flight to Hawaii for a football game. Pitre actively participated in this meeting by serving as a moderator of the debate.

Later that evening, Scott and one or two other students went to President Jones' home to request that he not leave for Hawaii the next day. Several administration officials and these students discussed the Grambling situation with the President from approximately 11:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. The students committed themselves to take all action they possibly could to prevent any disturbance, specifically to prevent any interference with the buses. President Jones intimated that as long as there was no disturbance or violence, he felt sure it could be worked out so that boycotting students would not be penalized for missing classes. The meeting ended amiably, after which Scott spent a substantial amount of time and effort in going from dorm to dorm trying to pass the word to all students to make certain that no interference with the buses or disturbance resulted. He was successful and no interference or disturbance did in fact result. After being assured by his administrative staff that no danger of violence existed, President Jones departed for Hawaii later that morning.

Thus, the entire day of November 1, 1972, consisted of three student assemblies and a series of meetings with the administration to discuss the grievances. Scott, Jenkins and Acorn had exposed themselves as leaders of the boycott, and Pitre had, at least, actively participated in the day's activities. There was no testimony regarding Little or Aikens' activities on November 1.

B. The Day of the Disturbances

The next day, November 2, 1972, the class boycott continued. No student assembly meetings were held, although around 3:00 to 4:30 p.m. a number...