Tenth Circuit: Jury Got It Right—Charter School Did Not Violate Teacher’s Right When It Banned Gossip and Discussions about School

In Dillon v. Twin Peaks Charter Academy, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a jury verdict against a teacher’s claims of violation of her free speech and association rights by a charter school.  The teacher claimed that the charter school’s ban on gossip and command “forbidding teachers from discussing school matters outside of school” were unconstitutional.  The jury rejected her case and the district court awarded the charter school its costs.  The Tenth Circuit found no harmful errors in the proceedings and affirmed the trial court’s rulings and the jury verdict.