Teacher Ordered to Shut Up and Pay Up
Educators say court ruling is the kind of thing that makes them afraid to speak out
Richmond, VA (PRWEB) February 26, 2005 -- A major legal battle is quietly
taking place in Virginia. It involves a special ed teacher who was sued for
slander by a corporation after she contacted the state's department of education
and governor's office to request a special investigation and intervention at an
alternative school owned by the corporation. It also seems to be a case of
unabashed teacher abuse and student neglect.
For the first six months of
the 2002-2003 school year, Kandise Thomas-Humphrey was the instructional
specialist and health instructor at Bermuda Run Education Center in Prince
George, VA. She then abruptly resigned and, in May 2003, sent an email to the
Virginia Department of Education (VADOE) urging it to investigate her claim that
certain administrators at the school were violating federal laws as well as the
school's own guidelines while enforcing unfair student retention
policies.
She did not hear from VADOE until after she forwarded her
allegations to the office of Lieutenant Governor Timothy Caine in July 2003.
However, Carolyn Hodgkins in VADOE's compliance department summarily dismissed
Humphrey's allegations a month earlier, in June 2003, after only discussing them
with Warren G. Bull, executive director of Specialized Youth Services of
Virginia Inc., which owns and operates the school. Hodgkins is also the VADOE
employee who for several years certified the school.
VADOE conducted an
on-site "investigation" of Humphrey's allegations several months later, in
December 2003 and January 2004. It then reported its findings in February 2004,
almost a year after Humphrey's initial complaint: "While our investigation did
not reveal noncompliance, our office will continue to review these issues during
future compliance reviews at the facility and offer recommendations to
facilitate improved coordination of services with the placing
agencies."
Since October 2003, the corporation has retaliated by filing
two libel suits against Humphrey. In both, it petitioned Judge Timothy J. Hauler
of the Chesterfield County Circuit Court to order her to pay 1.1 million dollars
in damages.
The corporation "nonsuited" or voluntary dismissed the first
libel suit in November 2004. In a brief article about Virginia's nonsuit statute
(see related links below), Attorney Christopher J. Wesser of Richmond, VA,
explains, "To an extent, (this statute) means that plaintiffs can test their
strategies and theories by bringing a lawsuit and dragging the defense through
pleadings, discovery, trial preparation and a full trial - all while retaining
the right to dismiss the case before suffering a potentially adverse verdict or
judgment." (Please note that Wesser is not involved with this case in any
way.)
After Judge Hauler granted its request for a nonsuit, the
corporation filed another libel suit against Humphrey less than one week later
(case number CL04-1311). However, this time the corporation abandoned nearly all
the evidence and testimony from its initial suit and rested its case on the
results of the investigation VADOE conducted seven months after Humphrey
contacted VADOE and Hodgkins made Bull aware of the
allegations.
Thursday, February 17, 2005, the corporation persuaded Judge
Hauler to curtail Humphrey's freedom of speech by barring her from continuing to
speak with anyone about her allegations. He also ordered her to pay the
corporation's legal fees, around $20,000, even though the corporation failed to
make its case for over a million dollars in damages and presented no
documentation supporting its claim to have suffered financial harm.
"The
injunction also includes (VADOE)," says Humphrey. "I no longer have the ability
to appeal the initial findings of (VADOE) or forward additional supporting
evidence of my allegations. More important, in the event that I suspect or
witness abuse or neglect in relation to (the corporation or its school), I am
severely limited in my capacity to serve as a mandated reporter for the state of
Virginia."
Despite the injunction, Sandra Ruffin, VADOE's director of
federal program monitoring who testified for the plaintiff at the February 17
proceeding, sent Humphrey a postal letter dated February 21, 2005. Oddly enough,
it begins, "Thank you for your January 25, 2005, correspondence to Reba O'Connor
and me about concerns you and your former colleagues, by way of their
affidavits, have regarding the Bermuda Run Education Center. We take very
seriously the welfare of the students placed in private day schools for students
with disabilities. Anyone who has a concern or complaint is encouraged to
contact us."
Bruce Evans, a former part owner of the corporation, and
several educators and paraprofessionals who also used to work at the school
support Humphrey’s allegations in sworn affidavits and depositions. However,
Judge Hauler denied her requests to introduce these as evidence or call
witnesses because she somehow failed to respond to the second lawsuit within 21
days.
She plans to appeal the ruling and believes, "The improper manner
in which (VADOE) handled the issue resulted in the private alternative school
filing a lawsuit against me."
Many other educators and administrators
following the case agree with her and are appalled by VADOE's handling of her
allegations. They also insist that such lawsuits and verdicts send the wrong
message to the public as well as those in the education field.
As one
teacher speaking on the condition of anonymity revealed, "Most concerned
teachers keep their most serious educational concerns to themselves precisely
because cases like this one have them more concerned about job security and
their financial well-being."
The general public, especially parents and
guardians, is also beginning to take a keen interest in this whole matter
because, if teachers are afraid to speak out about neglect and abuse that might
be occurring in educational settings, the safety of their school-aged children
is severely compromised.
RELATED LINKS:
School Sues
Teacher...Again - http://www.educationnews.org/school-sues-teacher.htm
Virginia
Procedure: Supreme Court Clarifies Plaintiff's Broad Nonsuit Rights - http://www.morankikerbrown.com/CM/Articles/virginianonsuitdecision.asp
richard
jones (www.iamrj.com) is a
freelance journalist.
Copyright (c) 2005 richard jones. All rights
reserved.
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/2/prweb212329.htm