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Timothy CAMPBELL, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. E. B. MASUR et al., Defendants-Appellees

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit1973-10-29No. No. 72-1837
486 F.2d 554

Summary

Holding. The court vacated the district court's judgment and remanded the case for reexamination in light of the Supreme Court's decision in City of Kenosha v. Bruno, without deciding the merits of Campbell's First Amendment or due process claims.

Timothy Campbell, a high school teacher employed by Mathis Independent School District, was discharged during the term of his contract. He received a hearing before the school board two weeks after his termination, at which point the board reaffirmed its decision to discharge him. Campbell sued under federal civil rights law, claiming his termination violated his First Amendment rights and denied him procedural due process. The district court found that while the lack of a pre-termination hearing violated due process protections, the post-termination hearing cured that violation. The court awarded Campbell back pay through the date of the board hearing but denied all other relief.

While Campbell's appeal was pending, the Supreme Court decided City of Kenosha v. Bruno, which addressed jurisdictional issues involving municipal corporations. Because a Texas school district shares characteristics with a municipality, the appellate court determined that this recent Supreme Court decision required reconsideration of the jurisdictional foundations of Campbell's case.

Summary generated by law.co from the public-domain opinion. The opinion text itself is public domain.

Key issues

  • Whether a teacher's discharge violated First Amendment rights
  • Whether lack of pre-termination hearing violated due process
  • Whether post-termination hearing cured due process violation
  • Jurisdictional applicability of City of Kenosha v. Bruno to school district cases

Procedural posture

Campbell appealed a district court judgment that awarded him back pay but denied other relief, and the appellate court vacated and remanded for reconsideration of jurisdictional questions raised by intervening Supreme Court precedent.

Authorities cited

No cited authorities resolved to law.co cases yet.

Opinion

majority opinion

PER CURIAM:

The appellant, Timothy Campbell, brought an action in the District Court for the Southern District of Texas against “E. B. Masur, in his official capacity as former Superintendent of Mathis Independent School District; Antonio Rivera and V. M. Thyssen, in their official capacities as members of the Board of Trustees of Mathis Independent School District; Larry Stapp, Bennie Curtiss, L. C. Hennig, Joe Beard, and Wilson Rackley, in their official capacities as former members of the Board of Trustees of Mathis Independent School District; and Mathis Independent School District, a political subdivision of the State of Texas, and its officers, administrators, and successors in office.”

The nature of Campbell’s claim and references to the statutes which he asserted gave Federal jurisdiction over his claim are set forth in the first paragraph of his complaint, which reads as follows:

“This action is brought pursuant to the Civil Rights Act of 1871, United States Code Title 42, Section 1983. This Court has original jurisdiction of the action under the provisions of the United States Code Title 28, Section 1343(3) and 1343(4), and under United States Code Title 28, Section 1331, based upon the violation of rights secured by and arising under the Constitution and laws of the United States of America. Relief is also sought pursuant to the Federal Declaratory Judgment Act, United States Code Title 28, Sections 2201 and 2202. The amount in controversy exceeds the sum or value of $10,000.00, exclusive of interest and costs.”

Campbell had been a teacher in a high school of the Mathis Independent School District. He was discharged by the board of trustees of the school district. He was subsequently given a hearing before the board at which Campbell and his counsel were present. At the conclusion of this hearing the board reaffirmed its prior decision. This action for damages and for declaratory relief followed with Campbell asserting that his discharge violated his First, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendment constitutional rights. The district court held that Campbell should recover the amount of his salary to the date of the board meeting at which he was present. He was denied any other relief.

On appeal Campbell states the issue presented to this Court in this language:

“This is an action brought by a public high school teacher under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging that he was dismissed during the term of his contract in violation of the First Amendment and without procedural due process. Following an extensive trial, Judge Owen D. Cox held that the discharge did not violate the First Amendment; that the failure to provide a pretermination hearing violated due process; but that the violation was cured by the provision of a hearing two weeks after the termination. In this appeal, the teacher contends that his discharge violated the First Amendment, and that the post-termination hearing did not cure the due process violation.”

While this appeal was pending before this Court, the Supreme Court rendered its decision in City of Kenosha v. Bruno, 412 U.S. 507, 93 S.Ct. 2222, 37 L.Ed.2d 109, involving municipal corporations. A Texas school district, as is involved in this ease, is “in the nature of” a municipality. Harkless v. Sweeny Independent School District, 5th Cir. 1970, 427 F.2d 319. That which was said in the City of Kenosha opinion requires a reconsideration of the jurisdictional questions which are present in the case before us. Without giving consideration to the merits of the appeal, we vacate the judgment of the district court and remand the cause to it for reexamination and further consideration in the light of City of Kenosha v. Bruno, supra.

Vacated and remanded.