The Courts Now Say a Teacher Who Puts a First Grader in a Chokehold Has Qualified Immunity

[Nevilledog]

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Jane Coaston
@janecoaston
Qualified immunity is bad!

The Courts Now Say a Teacher Who Puts a First Grader in a Chokehold Has Qualified Immunity
The 5th Circuit published two opinions that allow public school employees to physically abuse students without fear of liability under civil rights law.
slate.com
7:37 AM · Jul 30, 2021

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/07/texas-corporal-punishment-qualified-immunity.html

The judge-made doctrine of qualified immunity has received significant attention over the past 14 months as the nation has grappled yet again with the persistent abuse of Black people at the hands of law enforcement.

The focus has centered on how qualified immunity protects law enforcement officers who abuse civilians, including children, on the streets and in neighborhoods. But as the debate over reform continues, it is important to keep in mind that qualified immunity extends beyond just police-civilian interactions. As two recent decisions by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals—the federal appeals court that covers Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi—lay bare, the doctrine is also wreaking havoc on children in school.

In June, the 5th Circuit published two opinions that allow public school employees to physically abuse students without fear of liability under federal civil rights law. The 5th Circuit is uniquely restrictive of students’ rights, and because of the doctrine of qualified immunity, there is little reason to believe that the court will change its jurisprudence on the issue anytime soon.

In T.O. v. Fort Bend Independent School District, the 5th Circuit dismissed a complaint brought on behalf of a first grader who claimed that a teacher seized him by the neck, threw him to the floor, and held him in a chokehold for several minutes. Six days later, in J.W. v. Paley, the court tossed a lawsuit filed on behalf of a special education student who was tased by a school resource officer multiple times, including after the student was lying face down on the ground and not struggling.

*snip*

[PortTack]

1. Anyone still wonder why ppl don't want to have kids??!!

[SharonClark]

2. Because they'll grown up to be cops or teachers with qualified immunity?

[CentralMass]

3. Does the parent who kicks the teachers ass who choked his or her first grader get the same ?

[marble falls]

4. Limited immunity??? Jail time. A teacher who did that to a kid of mine, we'd both need a lawyer.

[Baked Potato]

5. They are trying to kill public education any way they can. Nt