By MARK SCOLFORO·
Associated Press Writer·
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) -- A 14-year-old boy who registered opposition
to his school's dress code by wearing shirts sporting messages
critical of the superintendent has filed a second federal court
lawsuit challenging the policy. ·
The student, Filippo Scicchitano, alleges that school district
officials retaliated against him because of the previous suit,which
he won and which the U.S. Supreme Court declined to take up earlier
this year. ·
Scicchitano sued the Mount Carmel Area School District in
Northumberland County last week, seeking damages for being "forced ·
out of school, disciplined irrationally, selectively disciplined in ·
retaliation for his beliefs, embarrassed and humiliated." ·
Scicchitano was expelled from school for the year on Monday, the ·
second straight year that he has been kicked out for dress code ·
violations. ·
"It's a situation that is so egregious, I've not seen anything ·
like it in years," said his lawyer, Don Bailey. "This is a kid ·
who is being put out of school for exercising clearly established ·
constitutional rights that exist in cases that have been the law ·
for years." ·
Four years ago, the school board adopted a School Uniform policy
restricting student attire to khaki, navy or black pants and skirts
and solid-colored shirts, with or without the school approved logo. .
"The school district's position is that his violations have always
been failure to comply with school policy of school logo or no logo, ·
and that it really, for the most part, has nothing to do with any ·
slogans that he might be wearing," said attorney David L. Schwalm, ·
who represented the district in the previous suit. ·
In the previous suit, U.S. District Judge Malcolm Muir sided ·
with the district and other defendants, although the 3rd U.S. ·
Circuit Court of Appeals vacated that judgment and sent it back for ·
dismissal on grounds that Scicchitano was no longer enrolled in the ·
school district. ·
"As we anticipated, (his parents) re-enrolled him this year and ·
they promptly got into additional problems with respect to the ·
issue. Now it's back again," Schwalm said. ·
Superintendent Richard F. Beierschmitt said Scicchitano's ·
punishment is not related to the messages on his shirts, one of ·
which bore a German flag located above Beierschmitt's name
with a leg stomping on the U.S. Constitution on the bottom of
the shoe it states Mount Carmel School Board. ·
"He'd have to adhere to the styles of our standard uniform dress
code. He would not adhere to the uniform styles. He was wearing
logo's and everything else," said Beierschmitt, whose district is
located about 35 miles north of Harrisburg. ·
One shirt read, " Kids are People Too" and other shirt subjects
have included "Jeff Fox worthy's Top 10 reasons You might have a
REDNECK TRUCK if… 10. When riding in your truck, your kids "duck"
when they see their friends. 9 You have a four door truck, but only
one door will open and close. 8. You can get more people in your
truck than in your house. 7. You're antenna is taller than the local
radio station's. 6. You're driving a vehicle with no original body
parts. 5. Your always have to sign a release at the car wash. 4. Half
of your old truck is now a trailer. 3. Your horn plays more than one
song. 2. Your tires cost more than your truck. 1. Your TRUCK won't
fit through the bank's DRIVE-THRU. . · Judge to Mount Carmel, The
trouble is in Tinker itself you had a second grade student the
concurring opinion makes that pretty clear they had young kids their.
One defying pupil was Paul Tinker 8 years old who was in the second
grade another Hope Tinker was 11 years old in the 5th Grade.
Bailey said he expects to amend the suit to reflect more recent
events, including Scicchitano's expulsion. ·
Mount Carmel Area has received a warning for failing to meet the
standards set by the No child left behind act since the
implementation of it's uniform policy.