Myres v. Orleans Parish School Bd.
| Decision Date | 01 December 1982 |
| Docket Number | No. 13291,13291 |
| Citation | 423 So.2d 1303 |
| Parties | 8 Ed. Law Rep. 545 Leonard MYRES v. ORLEANS PARISH SCHOOL BOARD. |
| Court | Court of Appeal of Louisiana — District of US |
Leonard S. Myres, in pro per.
Charles T. Williams, New Orleans, for plaintiff-appellant.
Franklin V. Endom, Jr., New Orleans, for defendant-appellee.
Before GULOTTA, WARD and CIACCIO, JJ.
Leonard Myres is a school teacher who was employed by the Orleans Parish School Board until his dismissal during his first year of employment as a classroom instructor. Myres brought suit in Orleans Parish Civil District Court, seeking damages for breach of his employment contract and reinstatement with back pay, alleging that he was wrongfully discharged. After trial on the merits, the Trial Judge rendered judgment in favor of the defendant, Orleans Parish School Board. Myres appeals, contending that the Trial Judge erred in finding that the School Board acted within its discretion and that they relied on valid reasons for his discharge. We affirm the judgment of the Trial Court.
On April 6, 1981, after less than one year as a probationary teacher, Myres was discharged pursuant to the authority granted to the Orleans Parish School Board in LSA-R.S. 17:461 which provides:
All teachers shall serve a probationary term of three years reckoned from the date of appointment in the parish of Orleans, during which term the Orleans Parish school board may dismiss or discharge any such probationary teacher upon the recommendation of the superintendent of public schools for the Parish of Orleans, accompanied by the written reasons therefor.
Myres' discharge arose from an incident which occurred on February 2, 1981. Myres observed two students, a girl and a boy, fighting in the hallway of Cohen High School where Myres was assigned. The girl fled but Myres grabbed the boy and attempted to escort him to the principal's office for discipline. Carl Brown, another male student, interfered, breaking Myres' hold on the boy and allowing him to run from the building. Myres chased the boy without success and then returned to confront Carl Brown. Upon being questioned by Myres, Brown and a group of twelve to fifteen male students who had gathered became hostile. Myres described the incident that followed in his testimony at trial:
Well, what happened was, that when I told Carl Brown that I was going to take him to the office, he assumed the position that I was not going to take him to the office. So what--what happened was that I realized that I was in a situation where it was either going to be--I was going to either have to fight or something or grab him or something. So I realized that I had a starter pistol in my back pocket. So he was standing around with a group of his young friends blocking the door. So what I did, as I went to my back pocket, I pulled it out. I banished [sic] it like this (indicating). I froze everybody that was standing there. And when I froze them, then, I put it back in my pocket. And I escorted Carl Brown to the office.
Shortly after the incident, the principal of Cohen High School conducted an investigation, and in a report to the District Superintendent, the principal gave his conclusions:
1. Mr. Myres' action in attempting to stop disruption is commendable.
2. Mr. Myres' decision to be in possession of a gun on our campus is repugnant and unnecessary.
3. Mr. Myres' decision to use a gun in handling students is unpardonable and indicative of very poor judgment in a crisis, which could have resulted in disastrous consequences to himself, students, and the School District....
Consequently, the District Superintendent held a hearing which was attended by Myres, and after the hearing, the District Supervisor wrote a letter to the Superintendent for Human Resources Management, recommending Myres' discharge.
Another administrative hearing was held by the Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources who recommended the dismissal of Myres. The Superintendent of the Schools concurred, and his recommendation was forwarded to the School Board:
Mr. Myres' termination is being recommended because he demonstrated his incompetence and a gross lack of good judgment on February 2, 1981, while employed as a teacher at Walter L. Cohen Senior High School. On that day, Mr. Myres brandished a pistol to quell a confrontation he was then having with several students in the school building.
The foregoing recommendation has been preceded by a thorough investigation into the matter...
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