138 F.3d 1264
LITTLE ROCK SCHOOL DISTRICT, Plaintiff,
Servicemaster Management Services; Blytheville School
District; Bryant School District; Fort Smith School
District; West Memphis School District; Altus-Denning
School District; Ashdown School District; Barton-Lexa
School District; Batesville School District; Biggers-Reyno
School District; Black Rock School District; Bright Star
School District; Brinkley School District; Centerpoint
School District; Clarendon School District; Cotton Plant
School District; Cutter Morning Star School District;
Dewitt School District; Dollarway School District; Foreman
School District; Fountain Lake School District; Gillett
School District; Glen Rose School District; Guy-Perkins
School District; Hoxie School District; Jonesboro School
District; Kirby School District; LaVaca School District;
Lewisville School District; Magazine School District;
Malvern School District; Mammoth Spring School District;
Manila School District; Maynard School District; Oden
School District; Ozark School District; Plainview-Rover
School District; Pocahontas School District; Prairie Grove
School District; South Conway School District; Spring Hill
School District; Stamps School District; Stephens School
District; Turrell School District; Van Buren School
District; Warren School District; Watson Chapel School
District; West Fork School District; White Hall School
District; Winslow School District; Wonderview School
District; Yellville-Summit School District; Alma School
District; Alread School District; Beebe School District;
Bentonville School District; Bergman School District;
Berryville School District; Blevins School District;
Booneville School District; Bradford School District;
Buffalo Island School District; Caddo Hills School
District; Carthage School District; Charleston School
District; Corning School District; County Line Public
School; Crossett School District; Decatur School District;
Dermott School District; Dumas School District; Elaine
School District; Fordyce School District; Gosnell School
District; Grady School District; Greeb County Technical
Schools; Green Forest School District; Greenland School
District; Greenwood School District; Harrisburg School
District; Hamburg School District; Holly Grove School
District; Huttig School District; Jackson County School
District; Junction City School District; Lakeside School
District; Lead Hill School District; Leslie School
District; Marion School District; Marshall School
District; Mayflower School District; McGehee School
District; Mountainburg School District; Nettleton School
District; Newport School District; Ola School District;
Paragould School District; Parkin School District;
Pleasant View School District; Quitman School District;
Rural Special School District; Saratoga School District;
Searcy School District; Smackover School District;
Southside School District # 2 Bee Branch; Strong School
District; Stuttgart School District; Valley Spring School
District; Waldron School District; Weiner School District;
Wickes School District; Wynne School District; North
Little Rock Classroom Teachers Association; Pulaski
Association of Classroom Teachers; Little Rock Classroom
Teachers Association, Intervenor Plaintiffs,
Alexa Armstrong; Karlos Armstrong, Intervenor Plaintiffs-Appellants,
Ed Bullington, Intervenor Plaintiff,
Khayyam Davis, Intervenor Plaintiff-Appellant,
John Harrison, Intervenor Plaintiff,
Alvin Hudson; Tatia Hudson, Intervenor Plaintiffs-Appellants,
Milton Jackson, Intervenor Plaintiff,
Lorene Joshua; Leslie Joshua; Stacy Joshua; Wayne Joshua,
Intervenor Plaintiffs-Appellants,
Katherine Knight, Intervenor Plaintiff,
Sara Facen; Derrick Miles; Janice Miles; John M. Miles;
NAACP; Joyce Person; Brian Taylor; Hilton Taylor; Parsha
Taylor; Robert Willingham; Tonya Willingham, Intervenor
Plaintiffs-Appellants,
v.
NORTH LITTLE ROCK SCHOOL DISTRICT, Defendant,
Pulaski County Special School District, Defendant-Appellee,
State of Arkansas, Defendant,
Office of Desegregation Monitor, Claimant,
Northeast Arkansas School District, Movant,
Dale CHARLES; Robert L. Brown, Sr.; Gwen Hevey Jackson;
Diane Davis; Raymond Frazier, Plaintiffs,
v.
PULASKI COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION; Patricia Gee,
Individually and in her Official Capacity as a Member of the
Board of Education of the Little Rock School District, a
Public Body; George Cannon, Dr., Individually and in his
Official Capacity as a Member of the Board of Education of
the Little Rock School District, a Public Body; Katherine
Mitchell, Dr., Individually and in her Official Capacity as
a Member of the Board of Education of the Little Rock School
District, a Public Body; W.D. Hamilton, also known as Bill
Hamilton, Individually, and in his Official Capacity as a
Member of the Board of Education of the Little Rock School
District, a Public Body; Cecil Bailey, Individually and in
his Official Capacity as a Member of the Pulaski County
Board of Education, a Public Corporate; Thomas Broughton,
Individually and in his Official Capacity as a Member of the
Pulaski County Board of Education, a Public Corporate;
Martin Zoldessy, Dr., Individually and in his Official
Capacity as a Member of the Pulaski County Board of
Education, a Public Corporate, Defendants.
Nos. 97-1689, 97-1700.
United States Court of Appeals,
Eighth Circuit.
Submitted Feb. 24, 1998.
Decided March 18, 1998.
Robert Pressman, Lexington, MA, argued (John W. Walker, on the brief), for Appellant.
M. Samuel Jones III, Little Rock, AR, argued (Claire Shows Hancock, Pulaski County Special School District; Christopher Heller and John C. Fendley, Jr., Little Rock School District, on the brief), for Appellee.
Before RICHARD S. ARNOLD, Chief Judge, HEANEY and WOLLMAN, Circuit Judges.
HEANEY, Circuit Judge.
In this continuing desegregation litigation, the Joshua appellants represent the class of black school children and citizens. In this consolidated appeal, they contend that the district court's denial without a hearing of the Joshua appellants' motion with respect to the Robinson High School in the Pulaski County Special School District (PCSSD) was based on a mistake of law and constituted abuse of discretion.1
On November 1, 1996, the Joshua appellants asked the district court to either direct the Office of Desegregation Monitor (ODM) to investigate or set a hearing to determine whether the PCSSD should be held in contempt regarding allegations concerning the principal at Robinson High School. The court denied the Joshua appellants' motion, stating that it considered the allegations against the principal at Robinson High School an individual personnel matter that should be addressed by the PCSSD according to its own procedures. Subsequent to the district court's issuance of its order, the Robinson High School principal's employment ended. Consequently, the issue is moot, and we decline to issue an advisory opinion with respect to how the district court should handle similar allegations in the future.
For the aforementioned reasons, we dismiss the appeal as moot.
In their brief, the Joshua appellants also challenged the district court's action with respect to their motions concerning incentive schools in the Little Rock School District (LRSD) and the monitoring thereof as inconsistent with earlier mandates of this court. Before oral argument, the Joshua appellants and LRSD reached an agreement, resolving the issues concerning the incentive schools and LRSD. Consequently, on February 24, 1998, we issued an order dismissing the appeals against LRSD and there is no need to reach the merits of this appeal insofar as it involves the incentive schools
