A former Liberty High School student suspended for using a cell phone to send a nude photo to another student has dropped his lawsuit against Bedford County School Board members and his principal.
School officials testified in a U.S. District Court hearing last month that Aaron Michael Merkey, then a senior, was suspended in March for the rest of the year after he sent an image of a naked woman’s backside to a female student after she asked him not to send it.
He was initially suspended but given a probation period after which he could have been readmitted. That decision was appealed to the school board, which removed the provision for readmission.
Merkey claimed his rights were violated because, as an 18-year-old, the right to appeal should have been his. He claimed his parents initiated the appeal that led to the harsher punishment.
At the end of last month’s hearing to consider readmitting Merkey pending the resolution of his lawsuit, U.S. District Judge Norman Moon denied the request and said he did not see any merit to his claims.
Moon said he believed Merkey knew what his parents were doing and acquiesced to their actions even if he didn’t endorse them.
The lawsuit requested $50,000 in compensatory damages and $100,000 in punitive damages from Mary Brandon, the principal.
Attorney John Falcone, who represented the school board and Brandon, said today the move to dismiss the case was expected after the judge’s ruling at the May hearing.
Although Merkey could have appealed the school board decision to Bedford County Circuit Court, the time limit to do that has passed, Falcone said.
With school out and graduation passed, he said he doesn’t expect to hear any more about it.
“It appeared the primary reason for the suit was to attempt to get the young man back in school,” he said.
Merkey asked to withdraw the lawsuit earlier this month. Moon signed an order dismissing the case on June 8.
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