Judge grants extension for Brownsville school officials
The judge presiding over a lawsuit against the Brownsville Area School District has granted an extension for district officials to file an answer to the suit after the school board rejected to settle the matter last week.
On Wednesday, Judge Mark R. Hornak set a date of July 1 for Brownsville officials to answer the complaint brought against them in April by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on behalf of a middle school student and through her mother, Carolyn Raja, who claimed the student’s right to free speech was violated when she chose to sit during the Pledge of Allegiance and was punished for it on several occasions.
The student, identified as N.B., is a 13-year-old student at Brownsville Area Middle School.
ACLU attorney Witold J. Walczak alleged in the filing that district officials cannot make the child stand for the pledge because it violates her First Amendment rights.
The lawsuit requests monetary damages.
The school board was asked to approve a settlement for $16,000, but in an 8-0 vote on May 17, directors rejected the motion.
Hornak’s order states that district officials must advise ACLU attorneys in the case by June 20 of their intentions to answer or settle the suit on or before July 1.
According to the district’s solicitor, Jim Davis, the extension is an opportunity for district officials to file a response if the matter is not resolved, although he is not suggesting that decision has been made.
“It means we have some additional time if there can be a middle ground found to work the case out,” Davis said.
“In that time, the board may reconsider a settlement or not. It’s a very typical thing in lawsuits throughout litigation that parties have these ongoing discussions.”
Davis also noted that rumors that the district had lost its liability insurance by rejecting the settlement are unfounded.
“As far as I know, we still have our coverage,” he said.
“There are still issues with it, but from what I understand, we still have it,” he said.
The motion presented to the board last week proposed that $11,000 of the payment be paid by the district’s insurance carrier, School Claims Service.
Davis said Anthony Sanchez of Andrews and Price continues to serve as special counsel for the district in the matter.