American Justice
I have no independent information and no opinions on the relative merits of the case of former Greenville (PA) Education Association president Jon Ross and his firing. The district claims he was dismissed after several sexual harassment complaints. Ross claims he was fired for being a whistleblower. But after reading this story about Ross spending three hours on the stand before the state Labor Relations Board, on his fifth day of testimony, answering questions about events that took place in 2007 and 2008, for which he was fired in April 2009, I have to think one aspect of teacher due process that is being ignored by both sides is the right to a speedy trial.
Regardless of the outcome of the labor board hearing, Ross’s attorney has already drafted a civil rights complaint to be filed in U.S. district court.
Still, the Ross case has a long way to go before it reaches the legendary status of the Ivy Featherstone case in Columbus, Ohio. Read this New York Times story from August 5, 1997 for the details. At the time, Featherstone’s case was already three years old, and it went on for several more years before he exhausted all avenues. The experience apparently didn’t have much effect on Featherstone. He sued the Ohio State University College of Dentistry in 2001 for libel, slander and defamation, and last year he made the local TV news because he sued the city for damaging his spruce tree. Featherstone’s case was dismissed, and his response has to be seen to be believed.
