Pro Bono
Norton, Cashman Prevail on Behalf of Student
Columbia Associates Mike Cashman and Erik Norton achieved a favorable settlement for a student in a pro bono case that could have resulted in expulsion and criminal charges.
The incident involved alleged misconduct by a middle school student while participating in a school play. At curtain call the student, who was acting the part of a teacher in a skit, was booed by the audience. He reacted, by his own admission, poorly. The school district alleged that he made an obscene gesture to the audience and uttered a profanity. He claims that his gesture was not obscene and his utterance not profane. As luck would have it, the school district superintendent was visiting 
the school that day and walked into the auditorium just after the incident occurred.
Probably due in large part to the superintendent’s presence, the school decided to charge the student with a class one offense, “Obscene language, profanity, or gestures directed toward staff.” As a class one offense, not only did the student face expulsion, but the school was also required to file a police report, and criminal charges were brought against the student.
At the expulsion hearing, e-mails from staff members with their names redacted were the only evidence presented. The e-mails themselves were vague and contradictory as to what the student said and did. Based solely on these e-mails, the student was expelled.
On appeal to the school board, Mr. Norton made two arguments: 1) The student was denied due process because he had no opportunity to confront his accusers; and 2) Even if you were to accept as true everything that was alleged in the e-mails, the student should have been charged with a lesser offense. The significant distinction being that the student’s behavior was not “directed toward” a staff member, but rather the audience at large.
Without any question or comment on the facts, or the procedural defects, the school board upheld the expulsion.
On appeal to the S.C. Court of Common Pleas, Mr. Cashman served a number of detailed interrogatories, admissions, and document requests to highlight the weaknesses of its case to opposing counsel. One week before they were due, the school district’s attorney called and offered to settle. He would get the criminal charges dropped, the infraction would be redacted to a lower class offense, the expulsion would be expunged from his record, and his punishment would be limited to the suspension he had already completed.
The student is now in high school and performing well. His grades, which had always been above average, are now even better. With the expulsion and criminal charges off his record, he has a shot at a bright future.
