U.S. District Court
Where a plaintiff teacher has alleged that she was retaliated against her for exercising her First Amendment rights, summary judgment should be awarded in favor of the defendants because they have adduced ample evidence to show that the plaintiff’s speech had the potential to disrupt the school district’s learning environment.
“Plaintiff Kari MacRae (‘MacRae’) filed this lawsuit against Defendants Matthew Mattos (‘Mattos’), Matthew A. Ferron (‘Ferron’) and the Hanover Public Schools (the ‘District,’ collectively ‘Defendants’) under 42 U.S.C. §1983, alleging that Defendants retaliated against her for exercising her First Amendment rights. …
“MacRae is a Bourne resident who began working as a schoolteacher in 2015. … Prior to her employment in the District, MacRae held several teaching positions and operated a TikTok account under the username ‘NanaMacof4.’ … Using that TikTok account, MacRae liked, shared, posted or reposted six memes that are at issue in the present litigation. …
“… The First Circuit has set forth a three-part inquiry which governs ‘whether an adverse employment action against a public employee violates her First Amendment free speech rights.’ …
“For the purposes of the present motion, Defendants ‘do not contest, at least at the time the Plaintiff made her TikTok posts in approximately March 2021, that she did so as a private citizen or that her posts were a motivating factor in the decision to terminate the Plaintiff.’ … Instead...
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