Monday Morning Review: Local Governments in the Federal Appellate Courts

Here are last week’s published decisions involving local governments:

First Circuit

Town of Johnston v. Fed. Housing Finance Agency, No. 13-2034 (Aug. 27, 2014): The court affirmed the dismissal of the municipalities’ claim that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac failed to pay taxes on property transfers; the court found that statutory exemptions from taxation applied. As the court put it: “Six other circuits have recently considered this attempt to shoe-horn a transfer tax into a real property tax, and they have unanimously rejected the argument.”

Second Circuit

Holt v. Town of Stonington, No. 12-4878 (Aug. 29, 2014): The court found that plaintiff who challenged Town’s restrictions on her ability to build on her property failed to exhaust administrative remedies as required by Connecticut law.

Third Circuit

D.E. v. Cent. Dauphin Sch. Dist., No. 13-1294 (Aug. 27, 2014): The court affirmed the district court’s grant of summary judgment for school district on D.E.’s ADA and Rehabilitation Act claims, reversed the district court’s dismissal of IDEA claims for failure to exhaust, and concluded that D.E. is a person “aggrieved” under the IDEA when he sought to enforce a favorable decision that he obtained at the administrative level.

Fifth Circuit

Davis v. Fort Bend County, No. 13-20610 (Aug. 26, 2014): The court affirmed in part and reversed in part the district court’s grant of summary judgment for County, in suit brought by former employee allegiing discrimination and retaliation under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.

Sixth Circuit

Bible Believers v. Wayne County, No. 13-1635 (Aug. 27, 2014): The court affirmed summary judgment for County and officers in free speech, free exercise, and equal protection challenge in case arising out of officers’ removal of Bible Believers from festival after dispute arose. In the court’s view, “the threat of violence had grown too great to permit them to continue proselytizing.”

Eighth Circuit

Red River Freethinkers v. City of Fargo, No. 13-1934 (Aug. 25, 2014): The court affirmed that Ten Commandments monument is permissible under the Establishment Clause.
Williams v. Holley, No. 13-3720 (Aug. 25, 2014): The court affirmed denial of summary judgment to officer on qualified immunity grounds in case alleging that officer used excessive force in tasing and shooting Williams’s father.

Ninth Circuit

Cruz v. City of Anaheim, No. 12-55481 (Aug. 28, 2014): In case arising out of police officers’ shooting of Cesar Cruz, the court affirmed in part and reversed in part district court’s grant of summary judgment for officers.

D.C. Circuit

Blue v. D.C. Pub. Schools, No. 12-7122 (Aug. 29, 2014): In suit brought by student abused by teacher against school district, the court found that appeal was untimely because the district court had not resolved additional claims against one defendant, and therefore there was no final judgment.

Aug. 25, 2014-Aug. 29,2014