Local News
UPDATE: Backed by insurer, school board OKs keeping Layshock case alive
HERMITAGE — Hermitage School Board on Tuesday authorized appealing an appellate court's decision in the Justin Layshock case.
Layshock was a Hickory High School student suspended for creating an unflattering profile of his then principal, Eric Trosch, in December 2005 on the MySpace social networking Web site.
Layshock and his parents, Donald and Cheryl, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, sued the school board in federal court and a judge agreed that the district had violated Layshock’s free-speech rights by disciplining him for a profile Layshock created on his grandmother’s computer.
The school board appealed and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, Philadelphia, affirmed the decision of the lower court judge in an opinion filed earlier this month.
School board solicitor Roger R. Shaffer said the attorney handling the case for the board, Anthony G. Sanchez, Pittsburgh, does not want to immediately ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review the case.
Instead, Sanchez wants to ask that all of the judges of the Third Circuit consider the case, a so-called “en banc” panel.
A three-judge panel issued the initial ruling.
If the board is not satisfied by whatever decision the Third Circuit makes, such as refusing an en banc review or affirming the three-judge panel’s decision, the district could ask the Supreme Court to consider the case.
There is no absolute right to appeal to the Supreme Court and the justices choose which cases to consider.
Shaffer added that the appeal will not cost the district anything. The district’s insurance carrier has agreed to pay for the appeal.
Sanchez had said previously that the case is ripe for Supreme Court review because it deals with a school’s authority in the era of instant communication and rapid advances in technology.
On the same day of the Layshock decision, the Third Circuit handed down a ruling in another case that seemed to contradict its decision in the Layshock case, some legal observers said.
- Local News
-
-
Cleanup planned for 2nd city neighborhood
The Irvine Avenue cleanup in Sharon was so successful that similar efforts are being planned for another part of the city.
The Sharon Beautification Commission is organizing a cleanup for 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 2 for Meek Street and several surroundings streets, Sharon City Manager Tom Lavorini told council Thursday.
-
Lock up vehicles, police urge
Residents should be alert for suspicious activity and keep their cars and homes locked in the wake of a recent rash of thefts from cars — some of which were left unlocked, Southwest Mercer County Regional Police Chief Riley Smoot said.
The most recent thefts were reported Wednesday in the Dogwood Lane, Oak Hill Drive and Kiwanis Road area of West Middlesex.
-
Blue Streak thrills again
“It was great. What else can I say?” Dave Hahner said Thursday, just moments after taking his second ride on the Blue Streak.
That’s right. For the first time since 2006, Conneaut Lake Park’s historic roller coaster is back up and running. Once again ready, as Jack Moyers, chairman of the board of trustees of Conneaut Lake Park, put it, “to bring thrills and chills to children of all ages.”
-
3 Ohio men in county jail accused of Walmart theft ring
Three Ohio men are in Mercer County Jail for allegedly running a theft ring that stole video games and systems from Walmart stores and then sold them for cash.
Thomas “Tommy” Hamilton, 42, of Ashtabula; Alex Plitt, 34, of Jefferson; and Christopher Patton, 25, address unknown, were caught Aug. 25 after hitting up Walmart stores in Ohio and Pennsylvania for at least several months, Hempfield Township patrolman Daniel McCloskey said Wednesday.
-
Blue Streak may be winner
The trustees of Conneaut Lake Park have invited the media and members of American Coaster Enthusiasts to the park today, where they are expected to announce that they will be awarded $50,000 in the Pepsi Refresh contest to help refurbish the Blue Streak roller coaster.
-
Funding dries up
For two decades, Farrell Mayor Olive McKeithan has been an advocate for the city and its minority community. Now, one of the programs that’s near and dear to her heart is facing a funding crunch that could cause the Minority Health/ERASE Anti-Drug Coalition to cease operations at the end of the year.
Mrs. McKeithan helped start Minority Health 16 years ago when she worked for Sharon Regional Health System. It began as a way for the hospital to educate and serve the local African-American community, and since 1994 it has offered programs geared toward improving the health of blacks in the area.
-
Briefly - Sept. 1, 2010
Woman’s home burglarized for eighth time
Hearing in break-in, shooting case is off
Woman pleads not guilty to immigration charge
-
Food safety advocate to be honored by Ono
A Cincinnati woman who helps run a Grove City-based food safety group is being honored for her work by Yoko Ono, who will present her with a grant in Iceland.
-
Couple arraigned in baby’s death
The Greenville couple charged in the Jan. 17 death of their infant son waived their court appearances Tuesday before Mercer County Common Pleas Court President Judge Francis J. Fornelli. -
Teen’s mom in critical condition
The mother of the 17-year-old boy killed after Sunday night’s three-vehicle crash in West Salem Township remains hospitalized in critical condition.
- More Local News Headlines
-
Cleanup planned for 2nd city neighborhood
