The Nevada Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the firing of Greg John by the Douglas County School District and rejected his lawsuit accusing the district of discrimination and civil rights violations.
John was originally suspended after a fellow security officer accused him of unprofessional behavior including racial and sexual remarks about students and staff members. According to the opinion, John "videotaped special education students, made sexually explicit narrations regarding the students and then showed the video to others."
In addition, a female teacher accused him of sexual harassment.
After his two-week suspension, he also was barred from using the school's video surveillance equipment.
He filed a grievance with the union, but it was rejected. He then filed a claim with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which also concluded there was no violation.
He then sued, accusing the district of religious discrimination, violating his right to free speech and violating the Americans with Disabilities Act. He argued that his alcoholism constituted a protected disability.
After those incidents, John also was charged with obtaining confidential student disciplinary records and refusing to cooperate with the school district's investigation into that.
He was eventually fired by the district.
His state lawsuit was dismissed by the district court and he appealed to the Supreme Court.
The high court Wednesday agreed with District Judge David Gamble that John's activities are not protected and that the lawsuit was properly dismissed. The decision was unanimous, signed by all seven members of the court.
