In order to prevail, the students here need to show that the rule is unconstitutional in all its applications, which would include its application to them-in other words, that it is unconstitutional as applied. They asked that Howell be allowed to withdraw from school. Fuller v. Decatur Public School Board of Education School District 61 2001). That evening the School Board held an emergency meeting. Morales,527 U.S. 41, 119 S. Ct. 1849, 1863, 144 L. Ed. Ms. Kendrex stated that McPherson told her that everybody involved in the fight would be expelled for two years. School Dist. No. Based upon this testimony, the students argue that their due process rights were violated because their parents "were discouraged in pursuing the due process proceeding for their children.". 193, 636 N.E.2d 625, 628 (1993). On November 30, 1999, Plaintiffs Roosevelt Fuller, Gregory Howell, Terence Jarrett, Errol Bond, Shawn Honorable and Courtney Carson (students) filed their First Amended Complaint (# 29) against Defendants, Decatur Public School Board of Education School District 61 (School Board), Superintendent Kenneth Arndt, School Board President Jacqueline Goetter, and five members of the School Board. It is questionable whether it involves free speech rights. It makes the rule somewhat confusing, but it does not affect our analysis. (1) Judgment is entered in favor of Defendants and against the students on all counts of the students' First Amended Complaint. Moreover, *816 the students were found to have violated two other rules: the rule prohibiting physical confrontation or violence and the rule prohibiting acts that endanger the well-being of students, teachers or other school employees. Also, the students claimed the School Board did not listen to the tape of the hearings before Dr. Cooprider, look at the exhibits presented to the hearing officer, or request evidence from the students' files prior to voting on the expulsions. See Woodis, 160 F.3d at 438-39. Accordingly, a challenge to a school disciplinary policy fails unless the policy is "wholly arbitrary." Dist. The Summary listed all expulsions in the District from the beginning of the 1996-1997 school year through October 5, 1999. Accordingly, an expulsion hearing is sufficient to meet procedural due process requirements if the plaintiff knew the charges against him, received notice of the expulsion hearing, and was given a full opportunity to explain his position in an evidentiary hearing. Loading. Dunn, 158 F.3d at 965. However, a 15-year-old female student stated that people landed on her during the fight and when she got up to run she was kicked down by a person involved in the fight and heard her back pop. Co., 264 Ill.App.3d 576, 201 Ill.Dec. #204 BD. During the investigation, evidence was gathered which showed that each of the students was involved in the fight. Because the period of expulsion has ended, the students recognize that any remedy is necessarily limited, but they seek an order sending the case back to the district court for a determination whether expungement of the disciplinary records is an appropriate remedy. 2d at 1066. In addition, no one attended the hearings on their behalf. (Emphasis in original.). The Board conducted separate votes for each of the five remaining students; the result was that the length of the expulsions was shortened to last only through the remainder of the 1999-2000 school year. The evidence at each of the hearings also included the testimony, report, or both, of Doug Taylor, a Decatur police officer assigned to Eisenhower High School as a police liaison officer, regarding his investigation of the fight. Fuller, Honorable and Carson did not attend their hearings. Chavez, 27 F. Supp. As previously noted, the case law is clear that an expulsion hearing is sufficient to meet the procedural due process requirements of the law if the plaintiff knew the charges against him, received notice of the expulsion hearing, and was given a full opportunity to explain his position in an evidentiary hearing. The letter also stated that the administration was recommending that the student be expelled for two years. On September 17, 1999, a violent fight broke out in the bleachers at a high school football game in Decatur, Illinois, leaving spectators scrambling to escape the melee. The joint exhibits consisted of all of the documents presented to the independent hearing officer, a transcript of the hearings before the hearing officer, the hearing officer's reports and the records from the relevant School Board meetings. Accordingly, Dr. Amprey's testimony has been considered by this court and was found to be candid and truthful. 225, 158 F.3d 962, 966 (7th Cir.1998). Bond, his father, and a representative of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition were allowed to address the School Board on behalf of Bond. Boucher, 134 F.3d at 826-27. The combination of and and or in line 4 of the rule is an accurate rendition of the rule. The School Board returned to open session and voted to expel Fuller for two years. Fuller v. Decatur Public Sch. Perkins said that, at the October 1, 1999, School Board meeting, several members of the School Board indicated they believed the students were involved in gang activity based upon information received from law enforcement authorities. East & Administrative Campus 200 NE 14th St. Boca Raton, FL 33432 561-391-7274 They concluded that when vagueness permeates the text of such a law, it is subject to facial attack. At 1858. of City of Peoria, School Dist. denied, 409 U.S. 1027, 93 S. Ct. 475, 34 L. Ed. of EDU. Issues: Laws: Cases: Pro: IJPLE 4 (1) 2020 . In fact, information regarding the race of a student never appeared on the hearing officers' reports nor was the School Board ever advised of the race of any student facing expulsion. Justice Stevens, joined by Justices Souter and Ginsburg, recognized that the ordinance did not have a sufficiently substantial impact on conduct protected by the First Amendment to subject it to a facial overbreadth challenge. 2d 1053, 1069 (N.D.Ill.1998). of Educ. The students sought declaratory and injunctive relief, essentially seeking an Order reinstating them in school. . The day after the emergency meeting, November 9, the students filed their complaint in the present case along with a request for a temporary restraining order or a preliminary injunction. Stay up-to-date with how the law affects your life. Justice O'Connor, joined by Justice Breyer, said, If the ordinance applied only to persons reasonably believed to be gang members, this requirement might have cured the ordinance's vagueness because it would have directed the manner in which the order was issued by specifying to whom the order could be issued. 119 S.Ct. See Fraser, 478 U.S. at 686, 106 S. Ct. 3159; Stephenson, 110 F.3d at 1308. No one appeared for Carson or Honorable. Fuller Elementary located in Raleigh, North Carolina - NC. According to Arndt and Goetter, because these alternative education programs are not run by the District, the School Board could not have provided the alternative education programs to the students without the intervention of Governor Ryan. These gangs are well-known in the Seventh Circuit, as many of our opinions, see United States v. Hoover, 246 F.3d 1054 (7th Cir.2001) (The Gangster Disciples, a large and vicious street gang), and Goka v. Bobbitt, 862 F.2d 646 (7th Cir.1988) (The Notorious Vice Lords), for example, discuss their activities. The ordinance prohibited criminal street gang members from loitering with one another or other persons in any public place. According to state test scores, 53% of students are at least proficient in math and 64% in reading. Stephenson, 110 F.3d at 1308 (quoting Bethel School Dist. In separate votes, the Board voted to expel Bond, Carson, and Honorable for 2 years. The Seventh Circuit has determined that an expulsion hearing "need not take the form of a judicial or quasi-judicial trial." At FindLaw.com, we pride ourselves on being the number one source of free legal information and resources on the web. Both Perkins and Robinson voted against the expulsion of the students on November 8. A facial challenge in the latter situation is limited. On Friday, September 17, 1999, a football game was held at Eisenhower High School between Eisenhower and MacArthur High School. Approximately six minutes into the third quarter of the game, a fight broke out in the bleachers on the east end of the football field, the bleachers where fans of MacArthur were sitting. As we stated, the students lost at trial. A rule, regulation, or law can be facially unconstitutional under two different theories. The letters also stated that the administrators of the schools recommended the 2-year expulsions. Nor are we convinced that the request for expungement has been waived. Kadrmas v. Dickinson Public Schools Kelley v. Chicago Park District Kelo v. City of New London . Edwards v. . You're all set! The Monday after the game, an investigation began at each high school to determine who was involved in the fight. Perkins further candidly and truthfully testified that he could not say that he thought about the August 25, 1998, resolution when he was voting on student expulsions. See also Baxter v. Round Lake Area Schools,856 F. Supp. Page Korematsu v. United States Boehm testified that it was the only fight of this magnitude he had seen in 27 years in education. Public school 513 Students Grades K-5. The fight in which the students were involved began on one end of the bleachers and traveled all the way to the other end. others." This court notes that Ms. Howell, her son and Theresa Gray from the NAACP did attend the hearing before Dr. Cooprider. Perkins said that he "more often than not" followed the recommendation of the hearing officer regarding expulsions. 61 (District). A 15-year-old male student complained that he was struck in the left cheek and suffered a contusion to his face. On September 23, 1999, Kenneth Arndt (Arndt), Superintendent of Schools for the District, wrote a letter to the parent or guardian of each of the students. The principal at MacArthur said he had never seen a fight as bad as this one in his 27 years in education. Armstrong, 517 U.S. at 470, 116 S. Ct. 1480. Morales, 119 S. Ct. at 1863 (quoting City of Chicago v. Morales, 177 Ill. 2d 440, 227 Ill.Dec. Date: 05-24-2001 Case Style: Fuller v. Decatur Public School Board. This court cannot enjoin enforcement of a penalty which is no longer in existence. 2d 67 (1999), the students contend that Rule 10 has serious constitutional deficiencies and is fatally vague on its face. Perkins' testimony was both candid and credible. These reports showed that a 15-year-old female student stated that people landed on her during the fight and when she got up to run she was kicked down by a person involved in the fight and heard her back pop. The court notes that the form signed by Ms. Howell and her son on October 4, 1999, included a hand-written notation that "The Board of Education is being requested not to take action on expulsion since this is a voluntary withdrawal." Hoffman Estates, 455 U.S. at 495, 102 S. Ct. 1186; see also Woodis, 160 F.3d at 438. Why its important? On October 1, 1999, the School Board held a special meeting to consider the expulsion recommendation of Dr. Cooprider regarding Fuller and Jarrett. This court firmly believes that the citizens and students of Decatur should be able to go to a high school football game and watch the contest on the field without worrying about a violent confrontation erupting in the stands which could engulf them in the conflict. Rather, they rely on the second, which is that even if a law does not reach a substantial amount of constitutionally protected conduct, it can be found to be impermissibly vague if it fails to define the offense with sufficient definiteness that ordinary people can understand what conduct is prohibited and it fails to establish standards to permit enforcement in a nonarbitrary, nondiscriminatory manner. Website. ROOSEVELT FULLER, by his parents, GRETTA FULLER and ROOSEVELT HARRIS, et al., Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. DECATUR PUBLIC SCHOOL BOARD OF EDUCATION SCHOOL DISTRICT 61, et al., Defendants-Appellees. *825 Further, this court notes that both Perkins and Terry Robinson (Robinson) attended the November 8, 1999, School Board meeting. It showed participants punching and kicking each other without concern for the safety of others in the stands. An enactment imposing criminal sanctions demands more definiteness than one which regulates economic behavior, Hoffman Estates, or as is relevant in our case, one which regulates the conduct of students in the school setting. In Goss v. Lopez,419 U.S. 565, 574, 95 S. Ct. 729, 42 L. Ed. Defendants argue that Howell does not have standing to pursue this action as he has not suffered an injury which can be addressed by this court. Jeffrey Perkins (Perkins), an African American member of the School Board, was called as a witness by the students. 2d 320 (1972). 1972), cert. Perkins testified that he did not recall any discussion by the School Board about the resolution during any expulsion hearings. The email address cannot be subscribed. It is also important to recognize that the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently noted that the Supreme ZAMECNIK v. INDIAN PRAIRIE SCH. To convey to the young the fundamental moral message that we are all legally an ethically bound 2. During cross examination, Ms. Fuller further explained that she did not attend the hearing because she "had planned on just withdrawing him like Mrs. Howell and just letting him go to Springfield." Boucher v. School Bd. Vice Lords vs Gangster Disciples History What Happened? of Education (1999) Gangs have been part of the school system as far back as the 1930's. Involvement in gangs usually never exceeds 10% Why young people join gangs? Just because no weapons other than fists and feet were used by the students does not mean that innocent bystanders were not harmed, frightened and forced to flee the stands to avoid serious injury. of Greenfield, 134 F.3d 821, 827 (7th Cir. of Educ. In Morales, defendants who were convicted of violating Chicago's gang loitering ordinance and were sentenced to jail terms appealed, arguing that the ordinance was unconstitutionally vague. The violation of these two rules standing alone would form a sufficient basis for the School Board's expulsion of these students. Here, unlike the situation in Stephenson, the evidence presented before Dr. Cooprider and the School Board showed that the students engaged in conduct that was clearly proscribed by Rule 10. Traditional Public Charter Magnet. The School Board discussed that, because of the action of Governor Ryan, the students would have the opportunity to attend an alternative education program immediately. See Armstrong, 517 U.S. at 465, 116 S. Ct. 1480; Chavez, 27 F. Supp. The students argue that the phrase gang-like activity is unconstitutionally vague on its face. The Illinois Supreme Court found that the ordinance was unconstitutionally vague, and the United States Supreme Court agreed and affirmed. Robinson was never called by the students to testify at trial as an adverse witness. In addition, gang membership seems not to implicate the right of association: in Morales, the Chicago ordinance's impact on the social contact between gang members and others does not impair the First Amendment right of association that our cases have recognized. 119 S.Ct. In United States v. Armstrong,517 U.S. 456, 116 S. Ct. 1480, 134 L. Ed. Nevertheless, the students have persistently claimed in their pleadings that this case involves a two-year expulsion. The court further finds that the School Board did not act illegally, improperly or deny the students their constitutional rights. Contact us. Accord Boucher v. 99 Citing Cases The students do not proceed under this theory. Find Fuller Elementary test scores, student-teacher ratio, parent reviews and teacher stats. Second, this court concludes that the students did not present any evidence which established that the School Board's decision to expel them for engaging in violent behavior was in any way based upon race. The students' evidence consisted solely of statistics which were complied during the course of trial and did not exist prior to trial. This evidence consisted of statements from eyewitnesses and testimony from school administrators regarding their investigation of the fight. Because the right to an education is not a fundamental constitutional right, this court reviews the School Board's action to determine if it is an "exercise of governmental power without any reasonable justification." Arndt testified that this resolution was a political statement and had no impact on student expulsion cases. 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