Fitzgerald v. Barnstable School Committee
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''Fitzgerald v. Barnstable School Committee'', 555 U.S. 246 (2009), is a case in which the United States Supreme Court held that parents could sue a school committee under grounds of the
Equal Protection Clause The Equal Protection Clause is part of the first section of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The clause, which took effect in 1868, provides "''nor shall any State ... deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal ...
of the 14th Amendment..


Background

During the 2000-01 school year, Jacqueline Fitzgerald, a kindergartener at Hyannis West Elementary School in the Barnstable School District was coerced by a third-grader, to lift her dress up when she rode the public school bus to school. In February 2001, Fitzgerald told her parents about the incidents on the bus, and her parents contacted the school. The school identified two kindergarten students who corroborated Fitzgerald's account of the harassment, but the school's principal, Fredrick Scully, informed the Fitzgeralds the school would not take action. The Fitzgeralds contacted the Barnstable Police Department to investigate the matter, but the investigator determined there were insufficient evidence to bring criminal charges.http://oyez.com/cases/2000-2009/2008/2008_07_1125 In March 2001, the Fitzgeralds made a written request for a bus monitor, the separation of the children with disciplinary problems and the kindergarten students, and the removal of the third-grader from the bus. The superintendent of the Barnstable School District denied the request. The Fitzgeralds alleged that the teachers at Hyannis West Elementary School were not properly informed of the harassment and did not separate their daughter from the harasser. The Fitzgeralds filed suit alleging the school's response to the allegations of
sexual harassment Sexual harassment is a type of harassment involving the use of explicit or implicit sexual overtones, including the unwelcome and inappropriate promises of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment includes a range of actions fro ...
was inadequate. The complaint alleged violations of Title IX and
42 U.S.C. § 1983 The Enforcement Act of 1871 (), also known as the Ku Klux Klan Act, Third Enforcement Act, Third Ku Klux Klan Act, Civil Rights Act of 1871, or Force Act of 1871, is an Act of the United States Congress which empowered the President to suspend t ...
, and various state claims. The District Court of the District of Massachusetts dismissed the state claims and the § 1983 claim under
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (officially abbreviated Fed. R. Civ. P.; colloquially FRCP) govern civil procedure in United States district courts. The FRCP are promulgated by the United States Supreme Court pursuant to the Rules Enabling ...
12(b)(6) The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (officially abbreviated Fed. R. Civ. P.; colloquially FRCP) govern civil procedure in United States district courts. The FRCP are promulgated by the United States Supreme Court pursuant to the Rules Enabling ...
for a failure to state a claim. Subsequently, the district court granted summary judgment on the Title IX claim. The First Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the judgment of the district court and held that Title IX precluded § 1983 claims based on equal protection. The First Circuit stated that five conditions must be met for a plaintiff to succeed for a Title IX violation: (1) the institution is a recipient of federal funding, (2) severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive harassment occurred, (3) the harassment denied the student of educational opportunities or benefits, (4) the institution had actual knowledge of the harassment, and (5) the institution's deliberate indifference caused the student to be subjected to the harassment.


Opinion of the Court

In a unanimous decision the United States Supreme Court held Title IX does not preclude Section 1983 equal protection claims. Justice
Samuel Alito Samuel Anthony Alito Jr. ( ; born April 1, 1950) is an American lawyer and jurist who serves as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was nominated by President George W. Bush on October 31, 2005, and has served ...
wrote the opinion. The Court reversed the First Circuit's decision which found Title IX provided a comprehensive remedial scheme that precluded the use of Section 1983 claims. The decision resolved a split in the circuits, and abrogated the Second, Third, and Seventh Circuits opinions in ''Bruneau v. South Kortright Central School District'', ''Waid v. Merrill Area Public Schools'', and ''Pfeiffer v. Marion Center Area School District'' respectively. ''Fitzgerald'' affirmed the judgment of the Sixth, Eighth, and Tenth Circuits in ''Communities for Equity v. Michigan High School'', ''Crawford v. Davis'', and ''Seamons v. Snow'' respectively.


See also

*
List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 555 This is a list of all the United States Supreme Court cases frovolume 555of the United States Reports The ''United States Reports'' () are the official record ( law reports) of the Supreme Court of the United States. They include rulings, orde ...
* List of United States Supreme Court cases


References


External links

* {{Barnstable Public School District United States Supreme Court cases Second Enforcement Act of 1871 case law United States education case law 2009 in United States case law 2009 in education Education in Barnstable County, Massachusetts Sexual harassment in the United States United States Supreme Court cases of the Roberts Court Barnstable, Massachusetts Harassment case law