Author: Bernie James

Safety Law News for May 20, 2022

— In Tennessee, the United States Court of Appeals reversed dismissals of cases brought under Title IX by two students for student-on-student sexual harassment.  In separate incidents at different schools the students were assaulted, video-taped, and made to experience a…

Safety Law News for May 18, 2022

— In California, the California Court of Appeal, held that the pre-season sports release/waiver, signed by a student and his parents, expressly barred the student from recovering for injuries in a school sponsored football game.  The court reasoned that the…

Safety Law News for April 29, 2022

— In Pennsylvania, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania upheld the decision by school officials to deny a new student permission to attend school in-person.  The school required the student to participate in remote-learning because he was expelled for possessing a…

Safety Law News for April 25, 2022

— In Virginia, the United States Court of Appeals held that a student correctly asserted his First Amendment rights to challenge a suspension for comments made on campus.  The comments were made the day after the mass shooting at Marjory…

Safety Law news for April 22, 2022

— In North Carolina, the Court of Appeals of North Carolina affirmed the adjudication of a juvenile for the extortion of a classmate.  The misconduct involved obtaining favors from a fellow student through the threat of revealing partially nude images…

Safety Law News for April 18, 2022

— In Mississippi, the Court of Appeals of Mississippi reversed and reinstated a lawsuit brought by parents whose child was assaulted by a fellow-student.  Disagreeing with the lower court, the appellate court ruled that “public schools have the responsibility to…

Safety Law News for April 15, 2022

— In Arizona,  the Court of Appeals of Arizona held that a special relationship existed between the school district and a middle-school student who was assaulted by another student on campus.  The court refused to dismiss a case because, “the…

Safety Law News for April 13, 2022

— In Washington State, the Court of Appeals of Washington ruled that a school district has a special relationship with its students requiring their protection from foreseeable dangers.  The court explained that the duty extends to students engaged in interscholastic…

Safety Law News for April 8, 2022

— In Michigan, the United States Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court denial of qualified immunity for two school resource officers.  A student filed a lawsuit asserting a violation of his rights under the Fourth Amendment when the officers…

Safety Law News for April 4, 2022

— In Iowa, the United States District Court ruled that a school that failed to have a Title IX policy in place such that campus administrators did not know who was responsible for Title IX compliance and did not understand…