‘Hyperbolic’: Delaware district judge tosses $2.7M lawsuit filed by former school superintendent

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A Delaware district court judge has dismissed a wrongful termination lawsuit brought by a former Christina School educator.

In a blistering opinion issued earlier this month in the case brought by former Christina School Superintendent Dan Shelton, Chief Judge Colm Connolly called the arguments made by Shelton’s attorney Thomas Neuberger, “hyperbolic, painfully redundant and irrelevancy-filled.”

Shelton filed a multimillion-dollar federal lawsuit against the Christina School District’s board and individual board members in December 2024. He had been placed on indefinite administrative leave on a 4-3 vote earlier that year, and his contract extension through June 2026 was rescinded.

The complaint sought more than $2.7 million in compensation and punitive damages from the school district and board members YF Lou, Donald Patton, Alethea Smith-Tucker and Naveed Baqir. Smith-Tucker and Baqir have since left the board.

The lawsuit was a “slam dunk,” Neuberger told WHYY News at the time.

However, Chief Judge Connolly said the complaint failed to present any facts demonstrating that Shelton was fired, citing the school district’s chief financial officer’s declaration that Shelton was still on paid leave with full pay and benefits. His current salary is $210,043.

Connolly also said that Shelton provided no evidence of a contract breach stemming from the 2020 employment agreement or the contract rescission. Connolly added that the complaint read more like a press release than a legal filing.

Shelton’s lawsuit also argued that former board President Patton and the three other board members who voted to remove him were driven by personal animus, as evidenced by legal advice to the board given by its former longtime attorney, James McMackin.

McMackin’s July 2024 email to board members, obtained by WHYY News, warned that attempting to fire Shelton “does nothing but support the witch hunt narrative.”

The lawsuit highlighted its argument that Patton was especially hostile to Shelton, citing the former board president’s appearance on an April 2024 DETV show where he publicly referred to Shelton as a “racist.”

In an emailed statement, Patton said he and the other board members who voted to place Shelton on administrative leave and were individually named in the complaint look forward to revealing additional information about those votes after the 30-day period for filing an appeal has lapsed.

“They chose to make this a Donald Patton issue, but it takes ‘four’ individuals to vote in kind for any board action to be successful,” he said. “Four of us saw and heard the same concerns that required we address the issues, as was our duty as board members!”

Monica Moriak, president of the Christina School Board, said in a statement that the board is focused on “student outcomes.”

It’s unclear whether Shelton will appeal the district court decision. Neuberger said in a statement that they are reviewing the court decision and have no comment at this time. Parties have 30 days to appeal. Connolly said in his opinion that, if they appeal, they should study the basic tenets of contract law first, along with the federal court pleadings requirements.