SCRANTON – A federal judge has denied the attempt of Dunmore School District to remand its lawsuit over the reclassification of high school girls’ basketball program to state court, finding federal questions exist in the matter.
Dunmore School District of Dunmore initially filed suit in the Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas on June 19 versus the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association, of Mechanicsburg.
The action was removed to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania on June 29.
Dunmore is contesting a decision from the PIAA to promote the Dunmore High School Girls’ Basketball team from Class 3A to 4A, based on specific criteria in the organization’s new competitive balance rule.
According to PIAA policy, the group considers student enrollment and the number of transfer students (ones who enter school after ninth grade) participating in a given sports program and assigns points earned through participation in the PIAA postseason tournament, as a part of its newly-instituted Competitive Classification Formula.
Dunmore’s girls’ basketball team, the Lady Bucks, were awarded a total of six points by the PIAA – through reaching the state finals in 2019, the state quarterfinals this year and also receiving two new junior varsity players, who had transferred in from other schools.
As a result of the six points awarded and the two incoming transfer students, the PIAA decided Dunmore would move up in rank from the Class 3A designation to the Class 4A designation for the next classification cycle, which begins with the 2020-21 school year and lasts for two years.
Dunmore unsuccessfully attempted to appeal the ruling on two separate occasions, first in May and then in June. However, these appeals were consecutively denied by PIAA’s executive board and then by a full complement of the board on May 20, by a vote of 23-6.
Though initially opting not to proceed with legal action, Dunmore opted to go to court and based its new challenge of the PIAA on two main points.
The first tenet is the transfer rule approved last October, which retroactively changed the number of transfer students that count toward a higher class designation from two to one. Both transfer students came to Dunmore as non-athletic transfers, and the school district says they were counted as athletic transfers regardless by the PIAA.
Dunmore’s second tenet in the lawsuit argues the PIAA mistakenly awarded points to Dunmore based on the meaning of the word “participate.” Specifically, Dunmore was awarded two success points for reaching the state quarterfinals, a round that was never played since the coronavirus pandemic shut down the season before that round was held.
The PIAA filed an answer to the school district’s case on July 13, denying its allegations and presenting a dozen affirmative defenses. These included that the PIAA did not act in an arbitrary or irrational manner when it created the Competition Classification Formula and applied it to the Dunmore High School girls’ basketball team.
“Dunmore has failed to state a claim for violation of its due process rights because PIAA’s Board of Directors, which included representatives from District II (Dunmore’s District), adopted the Competition Classification Formula pursuant to the process and procedures set forth in PIAA By-Laws,” the answer read, in part.
“Dunmore has failed to state a claim for violation of its right to equal protection under the law because PIAA uniformly applies the Competition Classification Formula to all member schools. Dunmore High School, upon joining PIAA, agreed to abide by decisions of the Board of Directors relating to the school’s athletic program.
On July 15, the Dunmore School District filed a motion to remand the action to the Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas.
“Because this cause of action does not arise under the Constitution of the United States, nor under any federal law or treaty, original jurisdiction under the federal question jurisdiction authority is lacking,” per the school district.
UPDATE
U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania Judge Robert D. Mariani opted to deny the plaintiff’s motion to remand on Oct. 27, finding there was in fact a federal question at issue in this case.
“Here, there is no doubt that plaintiff’s complaint, on its face, presents a federal question. Plaintiff specifically cites the sources of the claimed Equal Rights and Due Process protections to be the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution,” Mariani said.
“Plaintiff sets out the standard for liability under the federal statute 42 U.S.C. Section 1983 and alleges that the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania has ruled that ‘the activities of the PIAA constitute state action.”
Mariani termed the contrast between the plaintiff’s argument of state laws being violated and relief sought under federal statutes as a “glaring contradiction” and “beyond disingenuous.”
“The complaint described is not the complaint filed,” Mariani said.
But Mariani added, in agreeing with the defendant, that the complaint does not contain a single reference to the Pennsylvania Constitution.
For alleged violations of the 14th Amendment’s due process and equal protection clauses, the plaintiff is seeking purely injunctive relief enjoining the defendant from reclassifying Dunmore from Class 3A to Class 4A for the sport of girls’ basketball.
The plaintiff is represented by Matthew D. Dempsey of Lenahan & Dempsey, in Scranton.
The defendant is represented by Alan R. Boynton Jr., Carol Steinour Young and Dana W. Chilson of McNees Wallace & Nurick, in Harrisburg.
U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania case 3:20-cv-01091
Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas case 2020-cv-2417
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com