GALVESTON — An appeals court ruled in 2002 that school districts can’t sue for defamation, so Galveston school district may face some hurdles if it moves forward with its lawsuit.

In a case that Galveston school district’s attorney argued is different, Port Arthur’s public school district in 2001 tried to sue a blogger for defamation. The Texas Ninth Court of Appeals tossed out the lawsuit based on black-letter law: New York Times v. Sullivan clearly prohibits such lawsuits.

“The question presented is whether a governmental unit may sue for defamation,” the opinion states. “The answer is no.”

Galveston public school district’s attorney David Feldman said the district would not be the plaintiff if a suit were filed — the firm would file a suit on behalf of administrators in their official capacities and individual board members. The suit, however, would be funded from the district’s budget.

Galveston public school district’s law firm last week sent gisdwatch.com administrator Sandra Tetley a letter demanding she remove what it termed libelous statements posted by her or anonymous users on her Web site www.gisdwatch.com and refrain from allowing such postings in the future.

If she refuses, the district plans to sue her, the demand letter stated. The so-called libelous postings accuse Superintendent Lynne Cleveland, trustees and administrators of lying, manipulation, falsifying budget numbers, using their positions for “personal gain,” violating the Open Meetings Act and spying on employees, among other things.

Feldman said Galveston’s potential lawsuit and Port Arthur’s suit are completely different – Galveston’s cases involves what its attorneys claim is defamation of individual officials rather than the district as a whole, he said.

“These (cases) are night and day,” he said.

Port Arthur Sues A Blogger

Philip Klein of Nederland runs a Web site called SouthEast Texas Political Review, a commentary on local issues.

In April 2000, Klein wrote a story reporting mayhem at a Port Arthur public high school prom. Klein wrote that there was a “huge gang fight” at Thomas Jefferson High School’s prom, labeling it: “TJ’s Prom From hell.”

The distinct sued Klein for defamation.

The appellate court tossed out the district’s appeal because its lawsuit was filed by a “unit of the state” and not a public official, the 2002 opinion states.

Prosecutions for libel on government have no place in the American system of jurisprudence, the Supreme Court ruled in Times v. Sullivan, which set the standard for defamation.

“If the government is permitted to use public resources to bring defamation claims against its critics, criticism of government will be silenced through, at the very least, fear of monetary loss,” stated the opinion authored by Justice David B. Gaultney.

A government or public official, however, could file individual lawsuits, if the defamatory attack is specifically targeted at them, the opinion states.

That’s why Feldman said the district has a sound legal basis to sue Tetley, he said.

Depending on what Tetley removes, the lawsuit will be filed in the name of individual officials, Feldman said.

Reputation

Port Arthur public school district argued that the alleged defamatory statements injured the district’s reputation, which was important in an era of competition for students between public and private schools.

“The importance of maintaining a government’s good reputation does not justify permitting the government to attack its critics by defamation suits,” the opinion states.

Cleveland has said trustees decided to take legal action after several board members asked what could be done about material on the site that was deterring potential employees and families from moving into the school district.

“It affects the image of the district; it affects teacher recruitment,” she said.

The statements, Feldman argued, accuse administrators and trustees of crimes — that kind of disruptive speech hinders the district from running effectively and efficiently, he said.

“They have a deep and abiding obligation to taxpayers to function in an effective and efficient way,” he said.

“If you got people out there accusing or stating that your public officials are committing crimes, it disrupts the effective, efficient operation of government.”

Tetley has not removed any postings. She said she’ll consult with her attorneys before deciding what, if anything, to delete.