Roberts v. Deal, 290 Ga. 705

Appellants Clara Roberts, Cecil Brown, and Charles Culver were elected to the Warren County Board of Education (WCBE).
Governor Perdue removed Roberts, Brown, and Culver from office after ethics findings under OCGA § 45-10-3.
Removal proceedings were conducted under OCGA § 45-10-4 and the Georgia Administrative Procedure Act; petition for judicial review followed.
Appellants appealed to Fulton County Superior Court, which denied relief; discretionary appeal was granted to this Court.
Appellees argue the appeal is moot as to Roberts but not as to Brown and Culver; laches and constitutional status of WCBE are central issues.
Court orders a partial reversal and partial dismissal, holding WCBE is constitutionally created and not pursuant to general statute, so OCGA § 45-10-3/4 do not apply to remove its members

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether OCGA § 45-10-3/4 apply to constitutionally created boards	Roberts argues §45-10-3/4 applies to all boards; WCBE not created by statute	Appellees contend WCBE is created by general statute; §45-10-3/4 valid	WCBE is constitutionally created; §45-10-3/4 do not apply
Is the appeal moot as to Roberts	Relief would reinstate Roberts if granted	Roberts’ term expired; mootness applicable	Roberts’ appeal is moot and dismissed as to her
Is the appeal moot or affected by laches as to Brown and Culver	Removal order seeks reinstatement or reversal	Laches not shown; timely challenge	Appeal not moot for Brown and Culver; laches not applicable
Whether the court should construe 'boards created by general statute' narrowly	General Assembly could include constitutional boards	Constitutional boards not created by statute; narrow construction required	Code §§ 45-10-3/45-10-4 apply only to statutory boards; narrow construction upheld
Whether other enumerations of error are rendered unnecessary	N/A	N/A	Division 2 controls; remaining issues unnecessary

Allen v. Yost, 282 Ga. 865 (2008) (mootness in presidential removal context)
Collins v. Lombard Corp., 270 Ga. 120 (1998) (timeliness and mootness principles in petitions for relief)
Chastain v. Baker, 255 Ga. 432 (1986) (mootness and administrative review principles)
Plyman v. Glynn County, 276 Ga. 426 (2003) (laches not warranted by delay in administrative review)
Bowen v. Griffith, 258 Ga. 162 (1988) (strict construction of forfeiture/removal statutes)
Wheeler v. Fargo School District, 200 Ga. 323 (1946) (county boards of education as constitutional entities)
Powell v. Price, 201 Ga. 833 (1947) (local boards are constitutionally empowered to manage education)
Estes v. Jones, 203 Ga. 686 (1948) (constitutional board creation status of county boards)
Stokes v. Edwards, 272 Ga. 98 (2000) (consideration of statutory vs constitutional board authority)
State v. Outen, 289 Ga. 579 (2011) (questions on removal authority context)