Brewer Storefront filed a lawsuit on July 6, 2018, in Texas state court on behalf of plaintiff David Tyson, Jr. against the Richardson Independent School District (RISD) and the seven members of the RISD Board of Trustees, alleging that they have continuously and systematically violated the Texas Open Meetings Act (TOMA). The fundamental tenet of TOMA is that, except for certain narrowly construed exceptions, all meetings of a governmental body must be open to the public. However, the complaint states that, instead of conducting all meetings in public, the Board members are “coordinating a backroom consensus” outside the view of the public.
The lawsuit states that, over the last seven years alone, the Board has voted unanimously on the overwhelming majority of more than 500 votes, and alleges that the votes were not preceded by any meaningful discussions or deliberations at the meetings at which the votes occurred. According to the complaint, plaintiff requests that all actions taken in violation of TOMA be declared void.
“Our client believes that Richardson ISD trustees are not being fully transparent about the operations of the school district,” says William A. Brewer III, partner at Brewer Storefront and lead counsel for plaintiff David Tyson. “Through its alleged violations of the Texas Open Meetings Act, the Board has deprived the citizens of Richardson of the right to know how the Board reaches its decisions – and denied them their lawful right to participate in the democratic process.”
An article in The Dallas Morning News, dated July 10, 2018, reports on the lawsuit and its significance to the local community. The Lake Highlands Advocate also reported on the filing.
Lawsuit Claims Richardson ISD Trustees Violated Texas Open Meetings Act (TOMA)
