Boddy had sought a preliminary injunction, requiring the board and Grech to permit her to speak at future Xenia school board meetings. Boddy, who made frequent claims that Lakota Schools were improperly handling race, gender and political issues before being voted off that board, does not live in Xenia nor does she have children in Xenia schools, according to the suit.
A court order is an “extraordinary” remedy, wrote Judge Michael Newman of the Southern District Court of Ohio, for a situation in which there is inconclusive evidence as to which party is at fault. Some evidence favors Boddy, while other evidence favors Grech and the board, Newman wrote.
Further, Boddy “has not satisfied her burden to show the applicable factors clearly demand immediate preliminary injunctive relief,” Newman wrote.
Last year, Xenia school board member Jeremy Cox proposed that the board of education approve and pay for an exterior consultant to conduct a critical race theory audit, which they declined to do on Sept. 24. The topic of critical race theory was placed on the Oct. 14 meeting agenda, leading a large number of people to show up that day, court filings show.
Many Republicans have argued critical race theory is being taught in elementary and high schools, despite repeated statements to the contrary from local K-12 school officials.
Boddy was one of several people who addressed the Xenia board on the topic that evening. According to court filings, Boddy began her remarks with, “I recently heard about the failing Xenia Board of Education and the cowardice superintendent who cannot perform adequately in his role.”
Shortly thereafter, Grech threatened to cut Boddy’s microphone, court filings show, as members of the audience began to boo her. The board went into recess for five minutes as the crowd became more agitated, before returning after five minutes’ time, according to court documents.
The court filing outlines two areas in which the judge heard competing evidence, the first regarding Boddy’s comments themselves. School board meetings are legally considered a “limited public forum,” in which criticisms of the board’s or the superintendent’s job performance is allowed, but personal attacks are not, documents show.
The second area is regarding Grech’s decision to cut Boddy’s mic. While school boards are not permitted to curtail speech they disagree with, they are permitted to uphold order in public meetings in order to function as such.
“The evidence currently in the record shows (Boddy) might eventually prevail in her First Amendment claim against (the board),” Newman wrote. “But the evidence falls short of clearly showing she is likely to succeed on the merits of her First Amendment claim.”
The suit has been ordered to mediation, which is expected to occur within 30 days, according to the filing. If the parties do not reach a settlement, the court will require them to file a Joint Proposed Scheduling Order, which will set deadlines for future legal action.
This is not the first clash Boddy has had with Dayton-area school board officials. Boddy served on the Lakota school board for a tumultuous two years that included numerous fights over political, gender and leadership issues.
A civil protection order issued by a Butler County court ordered her to have no contact with fellow board member Isaac Adi in 2023, which eventually led to her being voted off the Lakota school board, as she could not attend meetings with Adi present.
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