High Court to Weigh in on Marple Case

The West Virginia Supreme Court is considering whether the state Board of Education can be sued by a former superintendent over her firing. The board has asked the court to overturn a circuit judge’s ruling denying its request to dismiss Jorea Marple’s lawsuit. The Supreme Court will hear arguments on the appeal on Tuesday. Marple was fired in 2012. and sued the board and a former board president last year, alleging defamation, violation of due process rights and violation of open meetings law. In a court filing, the board says it’s entitled to qualified, or good faith, immunity as a state agency for discretionary actions it took relating to the decision to terminate Marple’s employment. Marple’s lawyers say that discretion doesn’t permit violation of constitutional or statutory rights.