Posted on 05/07/2013 6:04:50 AM PDT by Hojczyk
Lexington-Richland 5 paid former Chapin High teacher Scott Compton √ $85,000 to avoid a legal challenge, part of a settlement that led to his resignation after he stomped on an American flag during a class lesson.
The payment is on top of Compton’s salary that will be paid through June 7, even though he has been out of the classroom since December. School officials did not provide Compton’s salary Monday, but their plan pays teachers with his 12 years’ experience $43,340 to $59,647 a year.
Lexington-Richland 5 taxpayers also will foot the bill for more than $31,500 in attorney fees, records obtained by The State newspaper under a state Freedom of Information Act request show.
The $85,000 payment was described as “a compromise and resolution of disputed claims,” the records say.
It was not disclosed as part of Compton’s resignation, announced March 27, a decision that the settlement says is for “family and personal reasons” not spelled out.
“Prior to his resignation, attorneys for Mr. Compton informed district attorneys that he had prepared a complaint for filing in federal court,” Lexington-Richland 5 spokesman Mark Bounds said.
“Based on financial considerations related to anticipated legal fees to defend such a suit, the insurer made the decision to make a monetary (offer) to Mr. Compton. He accepted the offer.”
Darryl Smalls, Compton’s attorney, declined comment Monday on any aspect of the settlement.
In accepting the payment, Compton agreed not to pursue a legal challenge to how school officials sought his dismissal by seeking damages for claims that include defamation, emotional distress and breach of contract.
As part of the settlement, Lexington-Richland 5 admitted no liability in seeking to fire Compton.
Compton’s resignation is not an admission of wrongdoing, and he is guaranteed a letter of recommendation for future employment, records say.
He also is free to seek unemployment benefits without objection from Lexington-Richland 5.
Compton’s stomping of the flag last fall set off a furor in the community in northern Lexington County.
Some educators and military veterans split on whether dismissal was merited.
Superintendent Stephen Hefner sought to fire Compton, saying the stomping was the latest incident in what Hefner said was a pattern of poor judgment.
Lexington-Richland 5 has no standards for treatment of the flag, but school officials say Compton violated conduct expected of teachers.
Compton, in statements through his lawyer, said the action was not intended to be disrespectful but an effort to promote discussion with students on how the nation is much more than its symbols.
“We’re glad this issue is resolved,” Bounds said. “Its resolution is in the best interest of the district, our teachers and the students we serve.”
Exactly HOW is paying this P.O.S. in the best interests of anyone except him?
Oh I see,..you couldn't look up the federal flag code or even bother to ask a shudder Boy Scout how the US Flag is supposed to be treated.
Flag stomper in the middle. He believes the flag is just a symbol. Really? How about this. How about Compton be put in a ring with a Navy Seal who has been fighting for the freedoms that flag represents. I would pay up to $500 just to watch this metrosexual moron get his butt kicked.
It's a mad, mad, mad, mad world.
This man needs a “Tory late night counseling session”!
This man violated U.S. Code Title 4, Chapter 1, Section 8, when he laid the flag down on the floor. U.S. Code supercedes any State law, and supercedes any school board decision. This man is a FEDERAL CRIMINAL!!
He should be treated as one!
Long Live The Republic!
Next time, he should stomp on a Koran--and then see what happens.
In a sane world he would have been fired on the spot, no questions asked and with no settlement. However in the world of the New Normal, spending the money described in the story could be a bargain for the taxpayers. If the case went to Federal court, could you imagine what the attorney fees would be along with there being no guarantee the school board would win?
How famously stupid was this settlement to a rotten skunk.
I just came across this:
http://www.usflag.org/uscode36.html
U.S. Code Title 4, Chapter 1, Section 8
This code is the guide for all handling and display of the Stars and Stripes.
It does not impose penalties for misuse of the United States Flag.
That is left to the states and to the federal government for the District of Columbia.
Each state has its own flag law.
Criminal penalties for certain acts of desecration to the flag were contained in Title 18 of the United States Code prior to 1989.
The Supreme Court decision in Texas v. Johnson; June 21, 1989, held the statute unconstitutional.
This statute was amended when the Flag Protection Act of 1989 (Oct. 28, 1989) imposed a fine and/or up to I year in prison for knowingly mutilating, defacing, physically defiling, maintaining on the floor or trampling upon any flag of the United States.
The Flag Protection Act of 1989 was struck down by the Supreme Court decision, United States vs. Eichman, decided on June 11, 1990.
Since justice was not served in the courtroom, maybe it can be applied on the street.
He’s lucky that a couple of “Good Ole’ Boys” didn’t give him a stomping talk to.
Why would he need one? He can become an endowed professor at the university of his choice.
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