First an announcement: We’re Zooming with the Dawg this Friday!! Free for all Daily Dawg subscribers. Hope you can join me along with Andrea Gulley from our Amarillo office and Priscilla de la Garza from our Rio Grande Valley Office. If you are not already signed up send an email to info@wabsa.com.
Judges on the 5th Circuit have a greater sense of decorum than those who preside over the federal district courts. Perhaps that’s why the Circuit Court judges call the other guys “the lower courts.” We see this play out in the recent decision involving students slapping each other on their backsides on Fridays. The inferior tribunal referred to this as “Slap Ass Friday.” The 5th Circuit cleaned that up: “Slap Butt Friday.”
But perhaps the lower level courts are more attuned to the common person. We doubt that the lower level judge would think that “hoe” is the proper spelling of the word that vulgarians hurl at women by way of suggesting that they are ladies of easy virtue. A judge who comes from the people would understand the distinction between a common garden instrument and a hooker. The judges on the 5th Circuit somehow missed that.
The 5th Circuit had to discuss stuff like this because of a Title IX suit filed by the mother of a 7th grader who was offended by the Friday shenanigans and the name calling. The 5th Circuit was equally offended by the behavior of the students, but declined to second-guess how it was handled by middle school officials. Key Quote:
School districts enjoy flexibility in responding to student-on-student harassment. Here, the School District investigated B.L.’s allegations and imposed discipline when they were substantiated…..We cannot say that the School District responded in a way that was clearly unreasonable to B.L.’s reported harassment.
It’s Brend v. Copperas Cove ISD, decided by the 5th Circuit on September 15, 2020. We found the “unpublished” opinion at 2020 WL 5540132. I’m pleased to let you know that attorneys from the Walsh Gallegos firm, Haley Turner, Jennifer Childress, and Bridget Robinson, handled this case with appropriate decorum at all levels.
DAWG BONE: JUDGES WOULD RATHER LEAVE THIS STUFF TO THE ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS OF THE WORLD.
Tomorrow: Toolbox Tuesday!!