Background
Connie Morris, a physical education teacher and later Athletic Director for the Bessemer school system, filed suit against the Bessemer City Board of Education and Superintendent Keith Stewart. Morris alleged violations of Title VII, the Equal Pay Act, Section 1983, Section 1981, and retaliation following her reassignment after her position was eliminated. Only the retaliation and Equal Pay Act claims against the Board proceeded to trial, where a jury returned a verdict in favor of the defendants.
The court’s reasoning
The court considered all arguments raised by Morris on appeal, including claims regarding jury composition under 28 U.S.C. Section 1861, the exclusion of the Students First Act, alleged misstatements of Alabama law in jury instructions, the admission of misleading documents, the sufficiency of the evidence, and the lack of a legitimate non-discriminatory rationale for her reassignment. After careful consideration of the record and briefs, the court found no reversible error in the district court’s proceedings.
What it means going forward
The decision upholds the jury’s finding that the school board did not violate federal employment laws in its handling of Morris’s reassignment and termination of her athletic director role.