Jackson Free Press

On Friday, the U.S. District Court will rule on a Jackson Public Schools motion for a protective order that will allow virtually any document, file or record connected to the termination of former Chastain Middle School principal, Michael Ellis to be marked "confidential," without the court's review.

JPS Superintendent Earl Watkins fired Ellis in December 2006, citing falsified payroll documents and failure to achieve significant progress at Chastain, among other charges. Ellis claims that Watkins terminated him in retaliation for levying sexual harassment charges against Watkins. Ellis and his wife, Rachel, filed a Title VII lawsuit against Watkins and JPS in January.

Ellis' termination hearing, which began in mid-February, concluded in July after several lengthy delays. Hearing officer Robert Johnson III recently submitted a summary report about the hearing to the JPS Board. Johnson replaced state Board of Education member Charles McClelland, who recused himself after Ellis' attorney, Lisa Ross threatened legal action to have him removed from the case due to an alleged conflict of interest on McClelland's part. The board will rule on Ellis' future with Jackson schools based in part on Johnson's report.

In its motion, JPS states that the case has had an "extremely high profile," and received "significant exposure" in the local and state media. It goes on to say that the protective order will avoid turning every bit of evidence into a "nightly variety show," and protect witnesses from being "hounded by local news." The motion also accuses Ross of misusing information "in blatant violation" of a confidentiality agreement, and generating "no small measure" of publicity by frequently calling press conferences and speaking on camera. Such protective orders are common practice in employment litigation, according to the JPS motion.

In her response to the motion, Ross asserts that the protective order amounts to a gag order. She cites several incidences where Watkins and JPS personnel circulated information—most notably "fact-sheets" about the case—to the public and offered interviews to the press with JPS District Counsel JoAnne Shepherd and hired counsel Armin Moeller and Betty Mallet. Ross also defends herself against the charge of violating confidentiality, which she portrays as inaccurate.

"We're talking about a public body here, and their dealings ought to be transparent," Ross said. "The order would seal information even after the trial," she said.

Ross believes that JPS is attempting to keep Watkins' actions from the press, and says that Mississippi's 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that sexual harassment is a matter of public concern and record. Watkins' actions should be revealed to the public, she said.

ACLU attorney John Williams disagrees that the order would have a chilling effect on what media could report.

"The goal is to protect the judicial process," Williams said. He said that the order only protects the discovery process, where some findings could be irrelevant to the case or disallowed for the trial by the judge.

The order would not apply to evidence introduced or witnesses questioned during the trial. "I don't think any judge would allow that," he said.

Uniform local rules of U.S. District Courts, however, say that a judge can order that portions of any trial be sealed if the requesting party can show good cause for the order.