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MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF E
MISSISSIPPIT STATE BOARD OF I}DUCATION; AND
MISSISSIPPI COMMISSION ON AdCREDITATION RESPONDENTS
ER AND OPINION
The Jackson Public School District Board of Trustees and Dr. Freddrick Murray, in his
official capacity as superintendent, haye presented before this Court their Motion for Temporary
Restraining Order and Preliminary Inj~ction. Having carefully considered the motion, and
being otherwise fully advised in the premises, this Court hereby denies this motion.
The procedure for determining whether an emergency situation exists in a public school
district is clearly articulated in the statutory language of Mississippi Code Annotated 37-17-
"If the recommendations for c rrective action are not taken by the local school district or
if the deficiencies are not rem ved by the end of the probationary period, the
Commission on School Accre itation shall conduct a hearing to allow the affected school
district to present evidence or other reasons why its accreditation should not be
withdrawn. Additionally, ift e local school district violates accreditation standards that
have been determined by the olicies and procedures of the State Board of Education to
be a basis for withdrawal of s hool district's accreditation without a probationary period,
the Commission on School A creditation shall conduct a hearing to allow the affected
school district to present evid nee or other reasons why its accreditation should not be
withdrawn. After its consider tion of the results of the hearing, the Commission on
School Accreditation shall b authorized, with the approval of the State Board of
Education, to withdraw the a creditation of a public school district, and issue a request to
the Governor that a state of e ergency be declared in that district.
If the State Board of Educattrn and the Commission on School Accreditation detrmine
that an extreme emergency s uation exists in a school district that jeopardizes thesafety,
security or education interest of the children enrolled in the schools in that district and
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In their motion for injunctive re(lief, the Petitioners acknowledge that, on September 13,
2017, the Commission on Accreditatio~ (the "Commission") conducted a hearing and voted to
declare an emergency situation in JackSon Public School District. The Commission then
forwarded this recommendation to the State Board of Education, which met on September 14,
2017, and also voted to declare a state pf emergency in the school district. Since that date, the
recommendation has been sent to Gov~mor Phil Bryant to exercise his constitutional executive
The Petitioners take issue with ~he fact that the Commission on Accreditation and the
State Board of Education did not comoly with the Accreditation Audit Procedures, a set of rules
and regulations approved by both entit~es, which allotted the superintendent of a school district
thirty (30) days to respond to any defiqiency contained in the audit report. The Petitioners state
that they had only eight (8) school da~s to respond to the audit report, which was generated on
August 31,2017. When the Commis$ion holds a meeting to decide whether a school district is
in a state of emergency, these same a~it procedures allow forty (40) minutes for the Office of
Accreditation to present its findings ~d forty (40) minutes for the school district to refute any of
these findings. The Petitioners also rujgue that the school district should have been granted
additional time to refute the findings, but were denied this additional time.
The Accreditation Audit Procedures are approved by the Commission and State Board of
Education and act as a tool by which ~o guide the agencies in their determinations of emergency
situations in school districts; however~ these regulatory procedures adopted by the Commission
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and the State Board of Education are ot statutory law, thus subject to exceptions in certain
necessary situations. See Herring Ga Co. v. Mississippi Employment Sec. Comm 'n, 944 So. 2d
943, 947 (Miss. Ct. App. 2006)(holdi g that administrative agencies are not bound by their non-
statutory procedures and may make e ceptions in proper circumstances). The most authoritative
rules and regulations of an administra ive agency are those promulgated by statutory provisions,
such as the procedures imposed by M ss. Code. Ann. 37-17-6(a)-(b). Mississippi Pub. Serv.
Comm'n v. Mississippi Power & Ligh Co., 593 So. 2d 997, 1000 (Miss. 1991). This Court is of
the opinion that the Commission and tate Board of Education adequately complied with these
statutory procedures before making t eir recommendations to the Governor. Moreover, a state
agency is allowed to "modify or othe ise adjust its rules and policies in the light of its
experience and changing circumstanc s." Watkins v. Mississippi Bd. of Bar Admissions, 659 So.
2d 561,568 (Miss. 1995) (citing Or/ ans Audubon Soc. v. Lee, 742 F.2d 901, 907 (5th Cir.
1984); See also Motor Vehicle Mfrs. ss'n of US., Inc. v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 463
U.S. 29, 42, 103 S. Ct. 2856, 77 L. E . 2d 443 (1983)). So long as the Commission and State
Board of Education complies with th procedures prescribed by statute, these entities may
modify or adjust their own rules as t ey see fit in necessary circumstances, such as a potentially
Secondly, in order to grant or deny a temporary restraining order, the Court must
determine: "(1) whether there exists substantial likelihood that the plaintiff will prevail on the
merits; (2) whether the injunction is ecessary to prevent irreparable harm; (3) whether the
threatened harm to the applicant out eighs the harm the injunction might do to the respondents;
and (4) whether entry of the injuncti n is consistent with the public interest." Lauderdale v.
DeSoto Cty. ex rei. Bd. ofSuperviso , 196 So. 3d 1091, 1099 (Miss. Ct. App. 2016) (citing to
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Sec yofState v. Gunn, 75 So.3d 1015, 020 (Miss. 2011). A temporary restraining order may be
issued where 'immediate and irreparabl injury, loss, or damage will result to the applicant'
before such time as a hearing on them tter can be held." See A-1 Pallet Co. v. City ofJackson,
40 So.3d 563, 567 (Miss.2010) (quotin M.R.C.P. 65(b)(l)). Also, a temporary restraining order
may be issued where a party's "right to relief on the merits remains uncertain" or pending the
final determination of a matter. Sec yo State v. Gunn, 75 So.3d 1015, 1020-1021 (Miss. 2011).
In the case before this Court, there has een no final judgment or determination by which to
appeal. The statutory language of Mi s. Code. Ann. 37-17-6 provides no appeal to a school
district when a state of emergency has een recommended to the Governor by the Commission
and State Board of Education. Even i the recommendation could be considered a final
determination or judgment from State oard of Education, all appeals from this agency would
not be appropriate in this Court, but r her, in Chancery Court, according to Mississippi law.
Miss. Code. Ann. 37-151-61 ("Any chool board of any school district which may be
aggrieved by any final rule, regulatio or order of the State Board of Education adopted under
the provisions of this chapter shall ha e the right to appeal therefrom to the chancery court."). In
this circumstance, however, Mississi i law directs the Commission and State Board of
Education to decide upon the merits f the case at hand -the condition of the school district and
the necessity to declare an emergenc situation- and make its recommendation to the Governor,
who will then make his final determi ation to declare a state of emergency in the school district.
Miss. Code. Ann. 37-17-6(a)-(b). pon conducting its hearing, the Commission on
Accreditation addressed the issues br ught forth in the 2017 audit ofthe Jackson Public School
District and allowed the District tore ute these issues. At its conclusion, the Commission voted
to declare an "extreme emergency si ation," and then forwarded this recommendation to the
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State Board ofEducation. The State Board of Education accepted this recommendation and then
forwarded the recommendation to the Governor; all of these proceedings being align with
statutory requirements. The merits of he case are not uncertain. Both the Commission and the
State Board of Education found that extreme emergency situation existed. These agencies did
not create a rule, regulation, or order hich warrants an appropriate appeal, but instead, decided
to recommend that the Governor declalre a state of emergency in the Jackson Public School
District. Therefore, the Petitioners haye already failed to satisfy the first prong of a tempomry
restraining order, because they did notucceed on the merits of their case with the chief fact-
finders of these matters. This Court c ot now enjoin the State Board of Education from any
further proceedings, when all proceedtngs at the administrative level are complete and any final
At this point, by requesting an) injunction of "any further proceedings or decisions in this
matter," the Petitioners are also askin~ this Court to usurp the executive authority of the
Governor to declare an emergency sittation, as granted to him by state law and the Mississippi
Constitution. This Court is well awar of basic principles of the separation of powers that exists
within the government of this state. rticle V of the Mississippi Constitution grants to the
Governor specific duties and authorit es, which are distinct to that branch of government. The
core ofthis executive authority is to ithfully execute the laws of this state. MS Const. Art. 5,
123; Miss. Code. Ann. 7-1-5 (West. The role ofthejudiciary is to see that the executive
branch does not overstep its boundar"es in its decision-making process, not to step into the shoes
of the executive branch and intercept decisions that it is statutorily entitled to make. Limbert v.
Mississippi Univ. for Women Alumn e Ass 'n, Inc., 998 So. 2d 993, 1000 (Miss. 2008). Once the
Commission and the State Board of ducation forwarded its recommendation to declare an
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extreme emergency situation in the Jac son Public School District, the ultimate decision, as
legislated by Miss. Code. Ann. 37-1 -6, was placed in the hands of the executive branch. This
Court would be remiss to now take thi decision out of the Governor's hands, who has not
overstepped his executive authority an has not been made a party to this action, simply because
the Petitioners were unhappy with the ount of time the Commission and the State Board of
Education took to declare a state of e ergency in the Jackson Public School District. To do so,
in the Court's opinion, would be tot e an unauthorized step beyond the boundary that separates
For these reasons, Motion for temporary Restraining Order and Preliminary Injunction is
hereby DENIED.
__,
JUDGE WILLI
'
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The Jackson Public School District Board of Trustees and Dr. Freddrick Murray,
in his official capacity as superintendent, on behalf of the Jackson Public School District
("District" or "Petitioner") file this Motion for Temporary Restraining Order and
Preliminary Injunction . In support of the Motion , the District sets forth the following facts
and law:
FACTS
conducted a limited on-site audit of the District. Thereafter, in August of that year, MOE
issued a report identifying a number of issues related to student safety, among others.
In response to the audit, JPS created a detailed Corrective Action Plan ("the Plan"),
which is attached to this Motion as Exhibit "A. " The Plan was implemented on
December 15, 2016 , after being approved by MOE. The District aggressively
addressed the issues identified by MOE and set a timeline for completion of its stated
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goals. Most of those timelines required completion of each corrective action within one
2. However, while the District was working to take the actions described in
the Corrective Action Plan , MOE conducted a second full investigative audit which
began in September of 2016 and was completed on July 31 , 2017 . The aud it report
was provided to the District on August 31, 2017 and is attached as Exh ibit "B." It is
3. The audit report contained a cover letter which indicated a report would be
September 13, 2017 at 10:00 a.m., eight (8) school days after receipt of the
approximately 680 page report. The District was informed in the cover letter that the
Commission "will determine whether an extreme emergency exists in the JPSD that
jeopardizes the safety, security, or educational interests of the children enrolled in the
schools in the District. In accordance with Miss . Code Ann . 37-17-6(12)(b) , the
the Interim Superintendent and the Board Chair would be allowed only forty (40)
approximately 680 page report. Further, if the Comm ission made any
presented to the State Board of Education ("State Board") at its regularly scheduled
meeting set for Friday, September 14, 2017, at 10:00 a.m . The State Board followed the
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same format as the Commission in allowing the District forty minutes to present
5. If the State Board concurs with the Commission's evaluation that a state of
extreme emergency exists, statutory authority allows the State Board to ask the
Governor to declare a state of emergency at Jackson Public School District under Miss.
response to a request made under Miss. Code Ann . 37-17-6(12)(b) , the State Board , as
allowed by 37-17-6(12)(c) , (13) , (15) , and (17) , may choose from several courses of
action , including but not limited to the following : escrow state funds , override any
conservator or contract with a private entity to administer, manage and operate the
district, grant transfers to students so they can attend other school districts, establish a
conservatorship or abolish the school district and administratively consolidate the district
with one or more existing school districts, reduce the size of the district and
administratively consolidate the parts of the district, and institute retention procedures
regarding the superintendent and board members as to whether or not they will
Ann . 37-17-6(12)(b) , which is the type of emergency that MOE is seeking to declare in
the Jackson Public School District, Section 37-17-13(1) provides that the State Board
has authority to abolish the school district and assume control and administration of the
schools formerly constituting the district, and appoint a conservator to carry out this
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purpose under the direction of the State Board . The current interim superintendent and
the current school board members would be immediately dismissed from service .
Section 37-17-13(1) provides that the State Board shall have all powers held by the
previously existing school board and previously existing school superintendent. Section
eligible to serve in that office for the school district when it is reconstituted, reorganized
appear before the Commission to respond to the audit report. In the alternative,
September 13, 2017 meeting . See Exhibit "C." Dr. Paula Vanderford , Chief of the
Office of Accountability, indicated that the September 13, 2017 meeting was a special-
called meeting , and as executive secretary, she did not have the authority to postpone
the meeting or grant additional time on the agenda . Dr. Vanderford also attached a copy
of the procedures for the meeting and highlighted the State Board of Education
and the State Board and forwarded to the District by Dr. Vanderford on September 12,
2017 , the District's Superintendent was to be given thirty school (30) days from receipt
of the report to respond to any deficiency cited . Those Accreditation Audit Procedures
are attached as Exhibit "E." However, the District was only given eight school days,
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despite its request for additional time to respond. Likewise , the same procedures
require that an exit conference be scheduled between the auditor and the District to
explain the auditor's basis for finding non-compliance. /d. This conference also was not
provided . Additionally, the same procedures require MOE to complete the investigative
audit in three weeks. However, this investigative audit took almost one year to
District, the Comm ission went forward with a hearing on September 13, 2017 , to
address the deficiencies purportedly revealed by the 2017 audit report. At the
conclusion of the September 13, 2017 , hearing , the Commission voted to declare an
"extreme emergency situation" in the District and recommend state takeover to the
Board of Education . On September 14, 2017, the Board of Education met and voted to
District. The recommendation has now been forwarded to the Governor to declare a
11 . In the eight school days it was provided , the District responded-to the best
of its abil ity-to the approximately 680 page report. Among the district's primary
arguments is that the audit does not accurately reflect the condition of the District today.
Because the audit was contemporaneous with the Corrective Action Plan already
prepared and executed by the District, a number of the audit's "findings" describe
conditions existing before corrective action was undertaken. The District has made
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recordkeeping , facilities, and teacher recruitment since the Corrective Action Plan was
implemented . 1
12. Further, Miss. Code Ann . Section 37-17-5 provides the following :
hearing, where questions can be asked of MOE representatives about the findings
made by the MOE. In a hearing , the District superintendent and board , as well as any
district personnel responsible for the areas cited , can respond to the allegations. The
MOE may contend that the invitation to the Commission meeting to hear the report and
respond is the District's chance to refute these alleged violations. However, neither the
forty (40) minutes nor the eight (8) school days allotted to the District begins to allow
enough time to properly and fully respond to these allegations - the allegations
1
For example: (I) the District was reorganized into four Pre-K-12 district areas and hired 14 new principals for the
2017-2018 school year; (2) the District made sign ificant progress correcting the citations that were cited by the
limited audit from April 2016. The District received I ,541 citations and to date I ,487 have been corrected, and
I ,402 have been certified by MOE as late of June 26, 2017. Corrective Action installations and replacements
include: 833 Fire Extinguishers, 28 Water Coo lers, 6 Lavatories, 5 Water Closets, 7 Urinals, 250 Ground Fault
Circuit Interrupters, 400 Exit Lights, and 400 Battery Operated Emergency Light Fixtures; (3) the District reviewed
I 00% of its school board policies; (4) from the 2017 audit, the District has already completed 412 corrections to the
706 citations in the report; and (5) the District purchased 44 new buses with GPS to monitor on-time arrival for the
2017-2018 school year. Bus arriva l time is over 95 percent, according to data collected from GPS technology.
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specifically directed at the superintendent and board and those allegations directed at
other processes and practices in the District. As previously stated, the Commission and
State Board has failed to follow their own audit procedures , which clearly state that "The
superintendent is given 30 school days (from the day of receipt of the report) to respond
in the cover letter to the report, those accused of violations of accreditation standards,
such as board members and the superintendent, face the possibility of being dismissed
from service in their capacities without even a chance to properly challenge the
allegations and give a full response as to whether an allegation is even accurate and , if
accurate, whether it has been corrected or will be corrected in the near future . 2
14. The fact that the audit does not accurately reflect the current state of the
District is pivotal. The State Board is permitted to seek a state of emergency in a local
school district only under lim ited circumstances . Among them , an "extreme emergency
situation ... that jeopardizes the safety, security or educational interests of the children
enrolled in the schools in that district and that emergency situation is believed to be
suggests that conditions at this moment are so dire that the state must intervene. But
many of the conditions on which the MOE based its conclusions do not exist today.
2
After the Comm ission's recommendation, but before the State Board 's meeting, the District filed a Verified
Complaint for Inj unctive Reli ef and Motion for Temporary Restraining Order in Hi nds County Chancery Court
seeki ng to prevent the State Board from voting on the Commiss ion's recommendation. The Court ultimately denied
the Motion, the Compla int was mooted by the State Board 's fi nal dec ision that an "extreme emergency" exists in the
District.
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Under Mississippi law, it would be arbitrary and capricious for the Board of Education to
audit report. Mississippi State Oep't of Health v. Natchez Community Hasp ., 743 So. 2d
973 , 977 (Miss. 1999) ("An administrative agency's decision is arbitrary when it is not
done according to reason and judgment, but depending on the will alone. An action is
principles. ")
15. Nor do MOE's own actions support its contention that an extreme
emergency exists . More than 17 months have elapsed since MOE issued its first audit
report on student safety issues. MOE then took nearly a year to complete its on-site
audit, and required an additional thirty days to complete its report. Never during that
period has MOE suggested that students in the District were in such grave danger that
16. Additionally, the State Board's decision is arbitrary and capricious and
prejudicial to the District as Dr. Paula Vanderford, who presented the MOE case to the
State Board , was allowed to be present during the State Board's deliberations on
September 14, 2017 . However, no one from the District was allowed to be present
LAW
17. The District is entitled to the requested Temporary Restraining Order and
Preliminary Injunction as there exists: (1) substantial likelihood the District will prevail on
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the merits once the District has adequate time to review the supporting documents and
respond to all the allegations in the report; (2) a substantial threat that the District - its
students , its superintendent and board - will suffer irreparable injury if the temporary
restraining order and preliminary injunction are not granted; (3) the threatened injury to
the District - its students, its superintendent and board - outweighs any threatened
harm to MOE; and (4) the grant of the temporary restraining order and preliminary
injunction will not disserve the public interest. See Littleton v. McAdams, 60 So. 3d 169,
171 (Miss. 2011 ). The turmoil caused in the District by an unnecessary declaration of
emergency would irreparably injure the District and its students and create a leadership
without the time needed to research and respond to each citation, the District could be
necessary. Allowing the District the full 30 days to respond to the audit report does not
harm MOE but rather ensures that such important Commission and State Board
decisions are made based on the full facts in issue. As to the public interest, the public
interest and, specifically the students of the Jackson Public School District, will be
served by adequate time for school leadership to review the documents supporting the
NOTICE
18. Ms. Erin Myers and Mr. Joseph Runnels, attorneys for the MOE through
the Mississippi Attorney General's Office, have been provided notice of this impending
request for a temporary restraining order and injunctive relief and are being served via
email.
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Education and the Mississippi Department of Education be restrained from taking up the
matter any further regarding an alleged extreme emergency in the Jackson Public
School District until such time as the District has been given all due process to which it
is entitled under the Accreditation Audit Procedures in order to allow the District time to
review the documents supporting the allegations in the audit report and prepare a
response.
Commission ..
allotted by MOE to the Jackson Public School District to prepare for the hearing
(1) MOE has enjoyed the luxury of having nearly a year to complete its
full investigative audit and required an additional thirty (30) days to
complete its report as compared to the District's eight (8) school days to
comment and/or respond to the numerous allegations of accreditation
violations, especially in consideration that MOE's report, in part, attacks
the credibility, governing style, and/or actions of both the superintendent
and school board ;
(2) the Jackson Public School District needed more time than eight (8)
school days to study the audit report's findings, to conduct research to
verify the report's findings, review documents relied upon by MOE, and
prepare its response to MOE's findings, including any supporting
documentation, to allow the school district to formulate a substantive
response to MOE's findings as articulated in its audit report;
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(3) the Jackson Public School District needed more than forty (40)
minutes on eight (8) school days' notice to respond to the numerous
allegations as outlined in MOE's 600-plus page audit report; and
(4) as a matter of fairness, the District should be given the requisite thirty
(30) days to prepare a response to the extensive audit report and present
facts in mitigation.
22 . Further, the District requests a waiver of the security as set out in M.R.C .P
65(c) . The MOE and its divisions are being provided notice of the TRO request. The
representatives prior to filing this TRO. Additionally, the MOE is not damaged by a
delay, a delay requested in the interests of fairness in order for the District to provide
complete and accurate information relating to an audit report by MOE auditors. The
District would argue that MOE's interests are served by a delay, so that the Commission
restraining order and preliminary injunction be granted to stay any further proceedings
or decisions in this matter so that the District may continue to prepare and review the
supporting documents in order to respond sufficiently to the allegations in the report and
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And
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I, the undersigned , hereby certify that I have filed a true and correct copy of the
foregoing motion with the Clerk of Court and have served via electronic mail to counsel
for the Mississippi Department of Education as listed below:
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VERIFICATION
STATE OF MISSISSIPPI
COUNTY OF HINDS
BEFORE ME, the undersigned authority, personally appeared Dr. Freddrick Murray, who
states on oath as follows:
1. I, Dr. Freddrick Murray, am over the age of eighteen (18) and am otherwise competent to
make the statements in this Verification. I am the Interim Superintendent of the Jackson
Public School District.
2. Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have read the foregoing Motion for Temporary
Restraining Order and Preliminary Injunction and the facts stated in it are true to the best
of my knowledge, information and belief.
SWORN TO AND SUBSCRIBED before me, this the~ :J~d day of September, 20 .
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