Johnson v. Cleveland City Sch. Dist.
| Decision Date | 09 June 2011 |
| Docket Number | Case No. CV-684948,No. 94214,94214 |
| Parties | SHARON JOHNSON, PH.D. PLAINTIFF-APPELLANT v. CLEVELAND CITY SCHOOL DIST., ET AL. DEFENDANTS-APPELLEES |
| Court | Ohio Court of Appeals |
ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLANT
Tracee D. Hilton-Rorar
Edward L. Gilbert Co., LPA
ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEES
William Michael Hanna
Tara A. Aschenbrand
Susan M. Dimickle
Squire, Sanders & Dempsey, LLP
ON RECONSIDERATION1
{¶ 1} Plaintiff-appellant, Sharon Johnson, Ph.D., appeals the trial court's judgment granting summary judgment in favor of defendants-appellees the Cleveland City School District, Sharon McDonald, Donna Bowen, and Clinton Faulkner (collectively appellees or the "district").We reverse and remand.
{¶ 2} In May 2007, Johnson filed a complaint against the district in federal court. In that case, Johnson alleged that she was fired from her position with the district in violation of Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ("ADA") and in violation of Chapter 4112 of the Ohio Revised Code. Johnson also asserted claims for breach of contract and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
{¶ 3} The district court granted appellee's motion for partial summary judgment on the breach of contract claim. After discovery, appellees filed another motion for summary judgment on the remainder of the claims. The district court granted the motion as it related to the federal claims, but declined to "exercise pendant jurisdiction over the remaining state claims." The district stated that "[n]othing in this Memorandum Opinion and Order should be construed to prevent Dr. Johnson from re-filing her state claims in an appropriate Ohio court to the extent such claims are permitted under Ohio law." Johnson appealed.
{¶ 4} In February 2009, while her federal appeal was pending, Johnson filed this action against the district alleging "multiple violations of 4112 of the Ohio Revised Code." She also asserted a claim for the intentional infliction of emotional distress.2
{¶ 5} In August 2009, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals held that the district court improperly limited the following claims because Johnson had exhausted the administrative proceedings: (1) failure to accommodate; (2) retaliatory denial of accommodations; and (3) discriminatory discharge. The Circuit Court reversed and remanded in part.
{¶ 6} In September 2009, defendants filed a motion for summary judgment in this case, which Johnson opposed. In October 2009, the trial court summarily granted the district's motion.
{¶ 7} In February 2010, the federal district court granted appellees' motion for summary judgment.
{¶ 8} Johnson began her employment as a school teacher with the district in 1989. Approximately a year prior to her employment with the district, Johnson was involved in an automobile accident and as a result was diagnosed with cervical myelopathy. The condition resembles the effects of a stroke or multiple sclerosis: if Johnson overexerts herself, her breathing becomes labored, she feels faint, her arm will "curl up," her legs become weak, and her muscles become fatigued.
{¶ 9} In 1993, Johnson's conditioned worsened to the point where she had difficulty walking, ascending stairs, and performing "activities of daily living." In August 2002, Johnson requested a "special transfer" to an area of administration with a handicapped facility. Dr. Patrick Bray, an occupational medicine specialist, was retained by the district to evaluate Johnson.
{¶ 10} In a September 12, 2002 letter, Dr. Bray described Johnson's case as "fairly complex and unusual," and opined that she suffered from a "disability covered by the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)." Bray further opined that Johnson's "ADA-covered disability does pose a direct threat of harm" to her. He concluded that:
"The district may remove this threat with reasonable accommodations such as the following: "[(1)] no standing for more than one hour per day[;] [(2)] no continuous speaking[;] [(3)] alternate sitting, standing and walking[;] [(4)] minimal stairs[;] [and (5)] use of ambulatory aids such as a cane, and under extreme circumstances, an[ ]electrical scooter as needed."
{¶ 11} Johnson's transfer request was granted, and in 2004, the district assigned her to Adlai Stevenson Elementary School under principal Susan Hawthorne-Clay. Hawthorne-Clay gave the following responsibilities to Johnson: (1) assisting a special needs teacher; (2) tutoring groups of eight to 10 students; and (3) filling in on "whatever was needed." Johnson was given the title "academic interventionist" while at Adlai Stevenson.
{¶ 12} In the fall of 2005, principal Hawthorne-Clay transferred to Robert H. Jamison School and requested that Johnson transfer with her. The district allowed the transfer, and Johnson did grant writing, parent interventions, and supervision of the administrative office in Hawthorne-Clay's absence.
{¶ 13} In the beginning of the 2006-2007 school year, appellee Sharon McDonald, a district administrator, visited Robert H. Jamison School and met Johnson for the first time. Johnson told McDonald that she held small reading groups and helped principal Hawthorne-Clay with disciplineat times. According to Johnson, McDonald told her that she would be returning to classroom teaching, and would be assigned to a classroom on the second floor.3 Johnson told McDonald of her medical restrictions, but McDonald insisted on the reassignment, despite the restrictions and the fact that the school's elevator was non-functional.
{¶ 14} After her visit to the school, McDonald met with other administrators from the district, specifically appellees Faulkner and Bowen. They reviewed Johnson's personnel file, including the 2002 statement from Dr. Bray with the listed restrictions, and discussed the restrictions and accommodations.
{¶ 15} The district thereafter met with Johnson and her union representative. Appellee Faulkner stated that he had reviewed Dr. Bray's report and believed that Johnson could work in a classroom. Johnson said that she had a "classroom exemption." Appellee Faulkner told Johnson that the district expected her to be a classroom teacher.
{¶ 16} Johnson filed a union grievance. As part of the resolution of the grievance, Johnson was promised that she would be "provided support via an additional teacher and grade level staff person." Further, the school's elevator was supposed to be fixed and Johnson was to have a key to the elevator.
{¶ 17} In a September 5, 2006 letter from principal Hawthorne-Clay to Johnson, Hawthorne-Clay informed Johnson that her assignment at Robert H. Jamison School had beenchanged "to assume the open 8th grade English-language arts position, per Ms. Sharon McDonald." Johnson reported to the English language arts class on September 7.
{¶ 18} District administrators visited the class on September 8. The substitute teacher was in the front of the class and Johnson was in the back of the room working with a small group of students. The administrators spoke to Johnson in the hall. Johnson complained about having to climb the stairs and the temperature of the classroom, i.e., it was too hot. According to Johnson, McDonald told her, "[e]nough, you're going to teach this classroom," and that the substitute teacher was going to be reassigned. Johnson felt overwhelmed by heat and stress and left that day; she did not return to the school until January 8, 2007.
{¶ 19} In September 2006, Johnson filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") alleging a violation of her ADA rights.
{¶ 20} In late October 2006, Johnson submitted to the district a leave of absence form with a letter from a Dr. Laura Shoemaker, which stated that Johnson was under her care and that she was unable to attend work "from September 8, 2006, until the resolution of her job requirements in accordance with her ADA restrictions."
{¶ 21} In December 2006, the Civil Rights Commission issued a no probable cause ruling on Johnson's EEOC complaint. The district thereafter denied Johnson's request for leave and informed her that she was to report to her classroom assignment at Robert H. Jamison on January 8, 2007, and Johnson did. Johnson testified that the second-floor classroom was "sauna like," andshe was without assistance to escort her students up and down the stairs. She felt physically unable to perform, and left. Johnson remained off work until February 8, 2007, and used accumulated sick time for her leave.
{¶ 22} On January 9, 2007, the day after she left, Johnson requested a "fitness for duty" examination. Pursuant to the request, Johnson had another examination with Dr. Bray. In a February 2007 report, Dr. Bray opined as follows:
{¶ 23} Bray concluded that Johnson could be reasonably accommodated with the same restrictions he provided in his September 2002 report, with the addition of "[n]o work environment with extreme heat, humidity, or cold temperatures; [and] [s]he should not be required to verbally control resistant students that persists after an initial warning[.]" The doctor explained that the last restriction was a "refinement of my previous recommendation that [Johnson] not engage in continuous speaking."
{¶ 24} According to Dr. Bray, Johnson's "disability is permanent in nature." But he noted...
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