Schools Executive Protected in Retaliation Claim, Panel Rules

A Chicago Public Schools executive who allegedly reported a Northwestern University employee for making social media posts critical of the city public school system was entitled to qualified immunity from free-speech retaliation claims, an appeals court ruled.

No prior case law put Matthew Lyons on notice that his actions could violate Kathleen Hayes’ established constitutional rights, Circuit Judge Candace Jackson-Akiwumi wrote in a Thursday opinion for the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. The decision reverses a district court’s decision that Lyons isn’t protected by qualified immunity.

The three-judge panel also dismissed the Board of Education from the ...