STATE OF FLORIDA

DIVISION OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, ) EDUCATION PRACTICES COMMISSION, ) and RALPH D. TURLINGTON, as )

Commissioner of Education, )

)

Petitioner, )

)

vs. ) CASE NO. 83-2291

)

STEPHEN C. LIND, )

)

Respondent. )

)

RECOMMENDED ORDER

Pursuant to notice, this cause was heard by Linda M. Rigot, the assigned Hearing Officer of the Division of Administrative Hearings, on November 14, 1983, in Miami, Florida.

APPEARANCES

For Petitioners: J. David Holder, Esquire

Tallahassee, Florida For Respondent: No appearance

Petitioners filed an Administrative Complaint seeking to suspend, revoke or take other disciplinary action against Respondent and against his Florida Teacher's Certificate. Respondent requested a formal hearing on the allegations contained within that Administrative Complaint. Accordingly, the issues for determination are whether Respondent is guilty of the charges contained in that Administrative Complaint and, if so, what disciplinary action should be taken, if any.

Petitioners presented the testimony of Desmond Patrick Gray, Jr.

Additionally, petitioners' Exhibits numbered 1 through 13 were accepted in evidence. Petitioners submitted posthearing proposed findings of fact in the form of a proposed recommended order. To the extent that any proposed findings have not been adopted in this Recommended Order, they have been rejected as not having been supported by the evidence, as having been irrelevant to the issues under consideration herein, or as constituting unsupported argument of counsel or conclusions of law.

FINDINGS OF FACT

1. Respondent holds Florida Teacher's Certificate 435362, issued by the Florida Department of Education, covering the area of substitute teaching, valid through June 30, 1987.

2. At all times material to the Administrative complaint, Respondent was employed by the Dade County Public Schools as an emergency substitute teacher.

   
   

3. On August 10, 1981, Respondent was hired as the manager of an apartment house. On August 17, 22 and 26, 1981, Respondent collected cash payments totaling $843 representing rents and deposits from tenant Rolando Delgado. Although Respondent was supposed to deposit all payments from tenants into the apartment house bank account, he failed to do so. On August 24, 1981, Respondent's employment was terminated. On August 27, 1981, the owner of the apartment house returned to find power tools and $100 in cash missing from the manager's office.

   
   

4. Based upon these facts, a warrant for Respondent's arrest was issued on September 1, 1981, charging him with the offense of grand theft in the second degree.

   
   

5. Following Respondent's arrest, he was ordered by the court to undergo a psychiatric evaluation. The report of the psychiatric evaluation was ordered to be filed with the court by November 25, 1981. On December 1, 1981, Respondent's attorney requested further psychiatric evaluation of Respondent. There is no evidence which indicates the ultimate disposition of the grand theft charge.

   
   

6. On October 21, 1981, at 2:30 a.m., Respondent was arrested and charged with disorderly intoxication. According to his affidavit, the arresting officer responded to a disturbance at the Bilmar Lounge and found numerous people outside the bar. Respondent was screaming and shouting at the crowd. He was hostile toward the police officers upon their arrival. The arresting officer described Respondent as intoxicated, with bloodshot eyes, flushed face, slurred speech, and the odor of alcoholic beverages. On October 28, 1981, Respondent was released on his own recognizance. No criminal information was filed by the State Attorney on this charge, so Respondent was not criminally prosecuted based upon that arrest.

   
   

7. On October 29, 1981, the day after Respondent's release, he was arrested at 1:15 a.m. for the offenses of burglary of an occupied residence and battery, and on an outstanding bench warrant for driving under the influence of alcoholic beverages. In his arrest affidavit, the arresting officer reported that Respondent forced his way into the victim's home through the front door by striking the victim on and about the head. The victim struggled with Respondent and subdued him until police arrived. The victim indicated that Respondent was the former boyfriend of a member of the family and that Respondent had been harassing the family and threatening to kill various members of the family during the previous week.

   
   

8. On December 14, 1981, a medical examination of Respondent was ordered. At the time of that Order, Respondent was incarcerated in the Dade County jail.

   
   

9. On January 11, 1982, the court entered an Order withholding adjudication of guilt and placing Respondent on probation for a period of 18 months, beginning January 11, 1982. As special conditions of his probation, Respondent was ordered to enter and successfully complete an alcohol or other rehabilitation program, to have no contact with the victim or any member of her family, and to seek psychological counseling through the probation department.

   
   

10. A little over a month later, on February 13, 1982, Respondent was once again arrested and charged with, disorderly intoxication. According to the arresting officer's affidavit, Respondent was observed fighting with another

    person in the street. Respondent showed signs of being intoxicated (slurred speech, staggering walk, and the odor of an alcoholic beverage on his breath). When the officers separated Respondent and the other individual, Respondent became verbally abusive to the police officers. The officers asked Respondent to calm down, and he responded by shouting obscenities at them, causing people in the immediate area to exit their homes to see what was happening. On March 17, 1982, Respondent was arraigned for trial on the charge of disorderly intoxication. Respondent entered a plea of guilty to the charge, was adjudicated guilty, and was sentenced to time served, which was 28 days.

    
    

11. On February 18, 1982, Respondent's probation officer filed an Affidavit with the court alleging that Respondent violated the terms of his probation by failing to comply with the special condition requiring successful completion of the comprehensive Alcohol Program. The Affidavit alleged that on February 15, 1982, Respondent was discharged from said program for violation of the program's rules.

    
    

12. On March 8, 1982, the court entered an Order of Modification of Probation finding that Respondent violated his probation. The court modified Respondent's probation by extending its term for an additional six months (from

    18 months to 24 months). In addition, the court ordered Respondent to serve 90 days in the Dade County stockade with credit for time served. Respondent was further ordered to participate in the Dade County stockade Alcohol Program and, upon his release from the stockade, to attend the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Program and Alcoholics Anonymous. Respondent was further ordered to make reports to the court every 30 days.

    
    

13. After learning of Respondent's various arrests on these criminal charges, Dr. Desmond Patrick Gray, Jr., Executive Director of the Division of Personnel Control for the Dade County Public Schools, held a conference for the record with Respondent on October 26, 1982. Respondent's arrests and criminal records were reviewed with him during the conference. Based upon his consideration of Respondent's criminal record and his conference with Respondent, Dr. Gray recommended that Respondent be removed from the list of authorized substitute teachers for the Dade County Public schools. On October 27, 1982, Respondent was notified of his removal from the list of authorized substitutes.

    
    

14. Based upon his review of the criminal charges against Respondent and his conference for the record with Respondent on October 26, 1982, Dr. Gray's professional opinion is that Respondent's effectiveness as an employee of the school board has been seriously reduced. It is Dr. Gray's judgment that Respondent's teaching certificate should be permanently revoked.

    
    

    CONCLUSIONS OF LAW

    
    

15. The Division of Administrative Hearings has jurisdiction over the parties hereto and the subject matter hereof. Section 120.57(1), Florida Statutes.

    
    

16. Section 231.28, Florida Statutes, provides that the Education practices Commission shall have authority to suspend, revoke, or otherwise penalize an individual's teaching certificate provided it can be shown that such person:

    
    

    (c) Has been guilty of gross immorality or an act involving moral

    turpitude;

    1. Has been convicted of a misdemeanor, felony, or any other criminal charge, other than a minor traffic violation;

    2. Upon investigation has been found guilty of personal conduct which seriously reduces his effec- tiveness as an employee of the school board.

    
    

17. Petitioners have clearly met their burden of proving that Respondent is guilty of violating each of the statutory prohibitions set forth above. Further, Respondent's repeated violation of each of those statutory prohibitions requires that severe action be taken. No evidence in mitigation of any penalty has been offered.

RECOMMENDATION

Based on the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is RECOMMENDED that a Final Order be entered finding Respondent guilty of the

allegations contained within the Administrative Complaint filed against him and permanently revoking Respondent's Florida Teacher's Certificate.

DONE and RECOMMENDED this 20th day of December, 1983, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida.

LINDA M. RIGOT, Hearing Officer Division of Administrative Hearings The Oakland Building

2009 Apalachee Parkway

Tallahassee, Florida 32301

(904) 488-9675

Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 20th day of December, 1983.

COPIES FURNISHED:

J. David Holder, Esquire

128 Salem Court

Post Office Box 1694 Tallahassee, Florida 32302

Mr. Stephen C. Lind

1503 North 207th Street, Manager's Apt. #234

Miami, Florida 33169

Donald L. Griesheimer, Executive Director

Education Practices Commission The Knott Building Tallahassee, Florida 32301

Docket for Case No: 83-002291

Orders for Case No: 83-002291