LAFAYETTE, La. — The Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal has dismissed a lawsuit challenging the closure of Ovey Comeaux High School, siding with the Lafayette Parish School Board after it rescinded its initial vote to shutter the school earlier this year.
The decision follows months of legal wrangling and public debate. Plaintiff Suzanne Lajaunie had argued the closure would harm students and employees — noting in court that the actions of the school board disappointed both her and Judge Valerie Gotch Garrett, who presided over the original trial.
“Judge Garrett today — y’all were in court — she made it very known how disappointed she was with the actions of the school board,” Lajaunie said.
The board appealed a lower court ruling, arguing the case was moot since board members had reversed their decision to close Comeaux High. As part of the settlement talks, plaintiffs pushed for specific anti-retaliation protections for those named in the case. The board declined, agreeing only to abide by current Louisiana law.
“We asked them not to retaliate against any plaintiffs and defendants—named witnesses in the case — they did not agree to that,” Lajaunie said, adding that in the past, district employees had described being reassigned in ways perceived as punitive.
Judge Garrett acknowledged the complexity and wide-reaching implications of the case, calling it “one of the most difficult trials she’s ever had to hear” and hoping that “valuable lessons [were] learned about public integrity.”
While the plaintiff conceded the outcome did not guarantee Comeaux would stay open, Lajaunie maintained the fight was not in vain, particularly in upholding protections for school employees and families: “We weren’t going to do so at the cost of LPSS employees and our families not being protected from retaliation.”
In a statement, the Lafayette Parish School Board said,
"The Lafayette Parish School Board is pleased that the Third Circuit Court of Appeal has decided to dismiss the case regarding the repurposing of Comeaux High. The Court recognized that there was no reason for the trial to continue. When the Board was made aware of a possible error in procedure, they made the decision to remedy it so they didn’t incur additional legal expenses related to this litigation. The Appeals Court made it clear that School Board members were well within their authority to rescind its decision regarding Comeaux, which they did during the April 15 meeting.
The appeals court agreed that the language of the injunction on April 13 was overly broad and restricted School Board members from doing the job they were elected to do. Once the March 12 action was reversed, the plaintiffs had received the outcome they said they wanted, making further litigation unnecessary.
On a related matter, the Louisiana Attorney General’s Office issued a letter on April 29 that it had reviewed an Open Meetings Law complaint related to the March 12 meeting. Their office determined the complaint was unreasonable and that no violation occurred.
Throughout this process, Board members have remained mindful of the students, families, and employees affected by these decisions. Moving forward, the Board will focus its time and energy on what matters most: providing students with strong educational and career opportunities that prepare them for success in school and in life."
The court ordered the school board to pay the plaintiffs’ attorney fees and all associated costs in full by May 29.
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