Reese v. Jefferson School District, No. 99-35543
| Court | United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (9th Circuit) |
| Writing for the Court | GOODWIN |
| Citation | 208 F.3d 736 |
| Docket Number | No. 99-35543 |
| Decision Date | 07 March 2000 |
| Parties | (9th Cir. 2000) MONICA REESE, JANEL REESE, CASSI HARR, and CORINA PRUETT,Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. JEFFERSON SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 14J; and in their official and individual capacities, JAMES MOSKAL, Superintendent; ROBERT TOWER, Principal; DAVID BEYERL, Vice Principal; STEVE WEDDLE, Director; JEFF GILMOUR, Director; WILLIAM LINHART, Director; GALE CARPENTER, Director; and GAIL CASE, Director, OPINION Defendants-Appellees |
Page 736
v.
JEFFERSON SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 14J; and in their official and individual capacities, JAMES MOSKAL, Superintendent; ROBERT TOWER, Principal; DAVID BEYERL, Vice Principal; STEVE WEDDLE, Director; JEFF GILMOUR, Director; WILLIAM LINHART, Director; GALE CARPENTER, Director; and GAIL CASE, Director, OPINION Defendants-Appellees.
Decided March 29, 2000
Page 737
COUNSEL: Paul B. Meadowbrook, Salem, Oregon, for the plaintiffsappellants.
Lisa E. Lear, Bullivant Houser Bailey, Portland, Oregon, for the defendants-appellees.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Oregon; Malcolm J. Marsh, District Judge, Presiding. D.C. No. CV-97-1673-MJM
Before: Alfred T. Goodwin, Susan P. Graber, and Raymond C. Fisher, Circuit Judges.
GOODWIN, Circuit Judge:
Plaintiffs, four female former high school students, appeal the summary judgment in favor of the school district and several named school district officials in an action for damages under Title IX and 42 U.S.C. S 1983. We affirm the judgment because: (1) the school district did not
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subject the plaintiffs to harassment by acting with deliberate indifference to harassment of which it had actual knowledge; and (2) the record does not support the claim that the school district punished the plaintiffs with discriminatory intent in violation of their right to equal protection of the law.
On Tuesday, May 27, 1997, four days after the last day of classes for seniors, Jefferson High School sponsored "senior skip day" and transported members of the senior class to a local state park. While at the park, the plaintiffs hid in the stalls of the boys' bathroom. When a group of senior boys came into the bathroom to change clothes, the plaintiffs ran out of the stalls and allegedly threw water balloons at the boys.
Prior to skip day, school authorities had warned that students who behaved inappropriately on the trip would jeopardize their participation in commencement exercises scheduled for Friday, May 30. After receiving several complaints and after interviewing several students, vice-principal David Beyerl suspended the plaintiffs on May 28.
On the morning of May 30, the school board held a special meeting, at which the plaintiffs were joined by parents and counsel. The plaintiffs admitted hiding in the boys' bathroom, but argued that they were merely retaliating for several acts of harassment committed by the boys during the school year. Prior to May 28, the plaintiffs had never reported any harassment, and the record offers no evidence that the school district actually knew prior to May 28 of the boys' alleged harassment of the girls. The boys did not admit to any misconduct, and the school district conducted no further investigation. The school board concluded the special meeting by upholding the suspension of the girls and, thus, although the plaintiffs graduated and received diplomas, they were barred from the commencement ceremony.
The plaintiffs filed their claims under Title IX and 42 U.S.C. S 1983, alleging that the school district was liable for the harassment allegedly committed by the boys during the year, and for excluding the plaintiffs from commencement. The magistrate judge prepared findings and recommendations upon which the district court based its judgment. The magistrate judge noted that the plaintiffs had raised no genuine issue of material fact. Reviewing de novo, the district court entered summary judgment in the defendants' favor.
On appeal from summary judgment, this court reviews de novo. See Washington v. Garrett, 10 F.3d 1421, 1428 (9th Cir. 1993). To rebut the motion for summary judgment successfully, the plaintiffs must point to some facts in the record that demonstrate a genuine issue of material fact and, with all reasonable inferences made in the plaintiffs' favor, could convince a reasonable jury to find for the plaintiffs. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 56; Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323 (1986); Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 249 (1986).
I. STUDENT-STUDENT HARASSMENT
A. Title IX Claims Under Davis and Gebser
Title IX provides, with certain exceptions not at issue here, that "[n]o person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance." 20 U.S.C. S 1681(a) (1994). The parties agree that the Board is a recipient of federal education funds for Title IX purposes.
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The Supreme Court recently addressed student-student harassment claims under Title IX in Davis v. Monroe County Board of Education, 119 S. Ct. 1661 (1999). This appeal presents our first application of...
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Adkins v. Kernan, 2:19-CV-0458-DMC-P
...528 U.S. 562, 564 (2000) (holding that equal protection claims may be brought by a “class of one”); Reese v. Jefferson Sch. Dist. No. 14J, 208 F.3d 736, 740 (9th Cir. 2000); Barren v. Harrington, 152 F.3d 1193, 1194 (9th Cir. 1998); Federal Deposit Ins. Corp. v. Henderson, 940 F.2d 465, 471......
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Sekona v. Perez, 1:19-cv-00400-NONE-GSA (PC)
...528 U.S. 562, 564 (2000) (holding that equal protection claims may be brought by a "class of one"); Reese v. Jefferson Sch. Dist. No. 14J, 208 F.3d 736, 740 (9th Cir. 2000); Barren v. Harrington, 152 F.3d 1193, 1194 (9th Cir. 1998); Federal Deposit Ins. Corp. v. Henderson, 940 F.2d 465, 471......
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Munoz v. Kolender, No. 00cv2323-LAB(CJA).
...inferences are to be drawn in that party's favor. See Anderson, 477 U.S. at 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505; Reese v. Jefferson Sch. Dist. No. 14J, 208 F.3d 736, 738 (9th Cir.2000). Although the court may not weigh evidence or make credibility determinations, conclusory allegations are insufficient to ......
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Campos v. City Of Merced, No. 1:08-cv-00001 GSA.
...the defendants acted in a discriminatory manner and that the discrimination was intentional.” Reese v. Jefferson School Dist. No. 14J, 208 F.3d 736, 739 (9th Cir.2000); see also Draper v. Reynolds, 369 F.3d 1270, 1278 n. 14 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 543 U.S. 988, 125 S.Ct. 507, 160 L.Ed.2d ......
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Adkins v. Kernan, 2:19-CV-0458-DMC-P
...528 U.S. 562, 564 (2000) (holding that equal protection claims may be brought by a “class of one”); Reese v. Jefferson Sch. Dist. No. 14J, 208 F.3d 736, 740 (9th Cir. 2000); Barren v. Harrington, 152 F.3d 1193, 1194 (9th Cir. 1998); Federal Deposit Ins. Corp. v. Henderson, 940 F.2d 465, 471......
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Sekona v. Perez, 1:19-cv-00400-NONE-GSA (PC)
...528 U.S. 562, 564 (2000) (holding that equal protection claims may be brought by a "class of one"); Reese v. Jefferson Sch. Dist. No. 14J, 208 F.3d 736, 740 (9th Cir. 2000); Barren v. Harrington, 152 F.3d 1193, 1194 (9th Cir. 1998); Federal Deposit Ins. Corp. v. Henderson, 940 F.2d 465, 471......
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Munoz v. Kolender, No. 00cv2323-LAB(CJA).
...inferences are to be drawn in that party's favor. See Anderson, 477 U.S. at 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505; Reese v. Jefferson Sch. Dist. No. 14J, 208 F.3d 736, 738 (9th Cir.2000). Although the court may not weigh evidence or make credibility determinations, conclusory allegations are insufficient to ......
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Campos v. City Of Merced, No. 1:08-cv-00001 GSA.
...the defendants acted in a discriminatory manner and that the discrimination was intentional.” Reese v. Jefferson School Dist. No. 14J, 208 F.3d 736, 739 (9th Cir.2000); see also Draper v. Reynolds, 369 F.3d 1270, 1278 n. 14 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 543 U.S. 988, 125 S.Ct. 507, 160 L.Ed.2d ......