Judge William Young has just announced in court that he is withdrawing the Opinion he issued dismissing the case brought by a Boston parents group over the so-called Boston “Zip Code Quota Plan.” For background see our posts:
The hearing has just concluded. The Judge was not happy. He found that the text messages concealed from the court were important, and that he was misled. He said he felt he had no choice but to withdraw his Opinion, and will decide later after the parties submit briefing, what he is able to do beyond withdrawing the Opinion given that the case is on appeal.
Here are some quotes from the Judge I wrote down during the hearing:
“This was my opinion, my signature’s on it, I was misled”
“The opinion is wrong, it’s wrong because the facts on which it was based … an opinion I issued under my signature is factually incorrect”
“I’m inclined to withdraw the opinion, I’ve never done that [before in 35 years]”
“I work very hard on my opinions, and this one’s no good.”
The clerk will enter the note: “The opinion entered in this case is withdrawn on the ground the court is satisfied it is factually inaccurate in certain material effects.”
The Judge said he wants briefing as to his authority to do more than just withdraw the Opinion, including whether the school committee counsel and defense counsel violated ethical rules in the redactions of text messages and failing to call the court’s attention to the deception after it was revealed.
| Date Filed | # | Docket Text |
|---|---|---|
| 07/09/2021 | 121 | Electronic Clerk’s Notes for proceedings held before Judge William G. Young: Motion Hearing held on 7/9/2021 by video re 112 MOTION Pursuant to Federal Rule 60(b) filed by Boston Parent Coalition for Academic Excellence Corp. After hearing arguments of counsel, the Court withdraws it’s opinion on the basis that it is factually inaccurate and sets a further briefing schedule. Briefs shall be filed within 30 days. The Court expresses no opinion as to any of the substantive legal analysis. (Court Reporter: Richard Romanow at bulldog@richromanow.com.)(Attorneys present: Attorney Hurd for the plaintif; Attorney Hodge for the defendants and Attorney Rachal for the intervenors) (Gaudet, Jennifer) (Entered: 07/09/2021) |
[This post has been updated since original publication]
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