Todd v. Fayette Cnty. Sch. Dist., 19-13821

• Decision Date: 27 May 2021
• Docket Number: No. 19-13821,19-13821
• Citation: 998 F.3d 1203
• Parties: Jerri TODD, Plaintiff - Appellant, v. FAYETTE COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT, Defendant - Appellee.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Eleventh Circuit

998 F.3d 1203

Jerri TODD, Plaintiff - Appellant,

v.FAYETTE COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT, Defendant - Appellee.

No. 19-13821

United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit.

May 27, 2021

Matthew C. Billips, Barrett & Farahany, LLP, Atlanta, GA, for Plaintiff - Appellant

Brian C. Smith, Phillip Leroy Hartley, Harben Hartley & Hawkins, LLP, Gainesville, GA, for Defendant - Appellee.

Before ROSENBAUM, LUCK, and ANDERSON, Circuit Judges.

ROSENBAUM, Circuit Judge:

Major depressive disorder affects many Americans—about 7% of U.S. adults endured at least one major depressive episode in 2017, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.Major Depression , Nat'l Inst.Of Mental Health, https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/major-depression.shtml (last updated Feb. 2019).Although major depressive disorder can certainly be debilitating, many have learned to live and even thrive with the condition.Indeed, some believe that President Abraham Lincoln suffered "bouts of depression."¹Yet he served as one of our country's most able Presidents.

Every day, and in many cases, throughout their entire adult lives, people with major depressive disorder contribute significantly and effectively in their jobs.And oftentimes, the Americans with Disabilities Act,42 U.S.C. §§ 12101 et seq. , protects these individuals from adverse employment action taken for reasons relating to their condition.

But even the best among us sometimes have setbacks.And the ADA does not require an employer to retain an employee who it believes behaved in a threatening and dangerous way—even if the employee's major depressive disorder is one reason, or the sole reason, that the employee engaged in that behavior.Unfortunately, this case presents that situation.

Plaintiff-AppellantJerri Todd suffers from major depressive disorder.For many years, she worked without incident as a schoolteacher.But in 2017, when she was speaking with other teachers, Todd allegedly threatened to kill herself and her son (who was a student at the school where Todd taught).She also allegedly made other threats against Defendant-Appellee Fayette County School District("District") administrators.Given those threats and Todd's alleged over-medication with Xanax while at school, the District did not renew Todd's contract out of concern for student and staff security.

Todd sued the District, claiming discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act,42 U.S.C. §§ 12101 et seq. , and the Rehabilitation Act,29 U.S.C. §§ 701 et seq . ; interference with her Family and Medical Leave Act,29 U.S.C. §§ 2601 et seq. , rights; and retaliation in violation of all three statutes.In chief, she alleges that, in ending her employment, the District discriminated against her because she suffers from major depressive disorder and retaliated against her for asserting her statutory rights.

Todd now appeals the district court's order granting the District summary judgment.In that order, the district court concluded that the District had terminated Todd's employment because of her conduct—the threats she made against her own life and the lives of others—not because she had major depressive disorder or because she had participated in statutorily protected activity.After careful review and with the benefit of oral argument, we affirm.

I.

We begin by reviewing the facts.At the summary-judgment stage, we view the facts and draw all reasonable inferences from them in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party—here, Todd.Lewis v. City of Union City,934 F.3d 1169, 1179(11th Cir.2019).

A.

Whitewater Middle School hired Todd as an art teacher in 2009.That was a difficult year for Todd, whose father had committed suicide the year before, triggering Todd's own suicidal thoughts.

Todd continued to struggle with her father's death and her mental health in the years that followed.She conveyed as much to Whitewater's principal Connie Baldwin, who helped refer Todd to a mental-health professional, Dr. Linda Weigand, and assisted Todd in scheduling her first appointment.

After Dr. Weigand diagnosed Todd with major depressive disorder and anxiety, Principal Baldwin's support for Todd remained steadfast.As Todd tells it, she and Principal Baldwin discussed her mental health, medication, treatment, and related matters many times over the years.Principal Baldwin also agreed to adjust Todd's work schedule so she could attend appointments with Dr. Weigand in the mornings, before coming to work.

Over the years, Todd also confided in other teachers at Whitewater, including Katy Sweat and Deanise Myers.In particular, Todd recalls discussing her thoughts of suicide with Sweat, who urged Todd not to act on those thoughts because Todd had a son.For a time, that was enough to help Todd through those dark periods.

B.

But on Friday, January 20, 2017, things took a turn for the worse.That afternoon, after a minor spat Todd had with the school administration, Sweat recalls Todd saying that "if she had a gun, she and [her son] would not have come back from" winter break.

Todd called Myers later that evening and, according to Myers's testimony, described six ways that she had considered killing herself and her son, including, for example, sedating him with Xanax so that he would not know what was happening when she killed him.Myers also remembers Todd describing her father and her son's father as "f***-ups" and saying that she was not going to let her son "grow up to be a f***-up""with bad genes."

That evening, Myers and Sweat discussed Todd's behavior.They were both concerned for the safety of Todd and her son, so they agreed to check in with Todd during the weekend.

Todd's behavior spiraled further down when she returned to school the following Monday.When Myers and Sweat visited Todd's classroom for a planning period, Todd again threatened herself and her son.

According to Sweat, Todd shouted that "she had every right to kill her son."Sweat also recalls Todd pointing at her and saying, "All the times you've said that I don't need to kill myself because of my son, well, guess what?He's going with me.I'm taking him with me."

For her part, Myers remembers Todd admitting that she had taken three Xanax pills earlier in the day, and Myers watched her take two more during their conversation.This episode was the tipping point for Myers and Sweat—it was time, they decided, for them to discuss Todd's behavior with the school administration.²

Todd, meanwhile, recollects those conversations differently.Concerning her Friday conversation with Sweat about not returning from winter break, Todd recalls saying that she"wished [she and her son] hadn't come back from the beach,""not in the sense that [she] wished [they] were dead, but merely that [she] wished [they] were at the beach."And as for her remarks to Myers that same evening, Todd insists she never said that she would kill her son.Instead, Todd claims it was Myers who said that she"sat at her kitchen table many times with her vodka and orange juice with a gun on her table contemplating suicide."Todd also denies making specific threats the following Monday.Instead, she asserts that Sweat and Myers badgered her about her mental health.

But even if Todd's memory of those conversations is accurate, Principal Baldwin did not know Todd's version on that Monday afternoon.Rather, Principal Baldwin learned only that Todd had ingested multiple Xanax pills during school, appeared agitated, and threatened to kill herself and her son—who was a student at the school.

Principal Baldwin immediately consulted Officer Lawrence Vazquez, who was employed by the county Sheriff's Department and assigned to Whitewater as the school resource officer.Based on his "knowledge, training, and experience," Officer Vazquez believed Todd's statements presented a "potential danger" and a "definite safety concern."So Officer Vazquez removed Todd from her classroom as a "safety precaution."

Todd denied to Officer Vazquez that she had threatened or planned to kill herself or her son, and she told him that she had an appointment with her therapist that afternoon.Principal Baldwin and Officer Vazquez wanted Todd to attend her appointment but doubted her ability to drive after ingesting Xanax pills.So they arranged for Sweat to drive Todd to her appointment.

After the appointment, Dr. Weigand told Sweat that Todd could return to school.³Dr. Weigand later testified that, during that appointment, she believed Todd lacked a plan or intent to kill herself or her son and showed no signs of intoxication.But she also conceded that she was unaware of any reports reflecting Todd's specific threats against herself and her son when she drew those conclusions.⁴And yet, Sweat testified that on the drive back to Whitewater Todd again remarked that "it was her right as a mother to be able to kill her son."Todd denies making this statement.

Todd's alleged statements about killing her son after her appointment with Dr. Weigand made Whitewater administrators even more concerned for her son's safety.Upon returning to school, Todd sought to find her son.But Officer Vazquez, who had been communicating with the Department of Family and Child Services("DFCS") while Todd was at her appointment, intercepted her and took her to his office.Principal Baldwin, among others, convinced Todd to sign a note that allowed Todd's friend and fellow Whitewater teacher, Amy Cannady, to take her son home with her.Todd was also persuaded to go to Piedmont Fayette Hospital for an evaluation.

The next day, January 24, a psychiatrist at Piedmont asked Dr. Weigand for her permission to involuntarily commit Todd to a mental-health facility.Although Dr. Weigand testified that she thought this step was unnecessary, she still agreed because the process was already in place, and she did not think it would hurt to have Todd evaluated.As a result, Todd was admitted, involuntarily, to Lakeview Behavioral Health until she was released...