News

Release…from Walker County Schools

Damon Raines, 706-638-7949
Superintendent of Schools
damonraines@walkerschools.org

July 20, 2018

The members of the Walker County Board of Education and the Superintendent
were notified by Mr. Randy Farmer, the attorney who had been hired by the School
Board’s insurance provider to represent the School District in the case filed by Dr.
Barrett, that Mr. Farmer and the School Board’s insurance provider negotiated the
settlement agreement and release with Plaintiff’s attorneys. The attorneys
representing the Plaintiff signed the agreement and release on June 19, 2018.

• The defense of this case including attorney’s fees and costs was paid for by
the Board’s insurance carrier and any payments made in settlement of this
case were also paid by the Board’s insurance carrier
• The only ruling by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals invalidating the School
Board’s public participation policy involved the need for a timeline on the
Superintendent’s scheduling of the initial meeting; the Superintendent and
Board Chair, representing the full Board, agreed to include a timeline in the
policy during mediation at Federal Court in 2015. But, Plaintiff did not agree
and would not relinquish his desire to address the Board regarding matters
of personnel in an open meeting and bypass the required meeting with the
Superintendent
• The public participation policy and procedure have been in place for
approximately thirty years; including Dr. Barrett’s request to speak, the
policy and procedure has been used two times during the current
Superintendent’s tenure
• When Dr. Barrett made his request, the initial meeting with the
Superintendent was scheduled the same day the request was received from
Dr. Barrett. It was also scheduled at Dr. Barrett’s work location and after
work hours to accommodate his schedule. This completely dispels the
continued comment of “unbridled discretion” mentioned by Dr. Barrett and
his legal team
• It has been alleged throughout the litigation that Dr. Barrett was not
permitted to speak at a Board meeting. The meeting in question was
cancelled due to inclement weather and did not take place. Dr. Barrett was
placed on the agenda under public participation for the next meeting of the
Board
• Although placed on the Board’s agenda to speak, Dr. Barrett did not show up
at that meeting of the Board and did not respond to email sent by the
Superintendent
• After multiple years of litigation, the settlement agreement has left the Board
of Education without a Public Participation Policy.