Nabozny v. Podlesny

95-3634 (7th Cir. filed Feb. 5, 1996) ; Clearinghouse Number: 51116

Description

Student Challenges School Officials' Failure to Protect Him from Sexual-Orientation Harassment by Other Students

Abstract

Appellant student has requested the Seventh Circuit to reverse the district court's dismissal of his sexual harassment claim. Alleging that he was physically assaulted and verbally harassed by other students for his homosexuality, appellant claimed that appellee school officials violated his Fourteenth Amendment rights by not protecting him from harassment. The district court held that without a special relationship between appellant and school officials they had no affirmative duty to protect him from private violence; school officials were not liable for any custom, policy, or practice of private actors; even if they were, their liability was not clearly established when their conduct occurred; and they were entitled to qualified immunity. On appeal, appellant argues that the district court's grant of summary judgment on the basis of qualified immunity is subject to de novo review; the presence of material fact requires reversal; he has a valid equal protection right not to be denied protection from harm because of his sexual orientation or gender; reasonable officials should have known that failing to protect him is unconstitutional; and the district court erred in finding insufficient evidence that school officials enhanced his risk of harm and in holding that schools could escape liability for encouraging students to harm other students.

Additional Information

Attorney Information
Plaintiff-Appellant represented by Patricia Logue, Lambda Legal Defense & Education Fund, 17 E. Monroe, Suite 212, Chicago, IL 60603, (312) 759-8110; David Buckel.
Docket Date
1970-01-01 06:00:00+00:00