Thomas Hayden Barnes v. Ronald M. Zaccari, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 2396

Barnes, a VSU student, was administratively withdrawn in May 2007 for alleged threatening conduct after communications with Zaccari; the removal relied on Policy 1902 and the Non-Academic Disciplinary framework.
Policy Manual and VSU Code create a property interest in continued enrollment only for students who obey rules and do not violate the Code.
Barnes received no predeprivation notice or hearing before removal, and later sought relief under §1983 and for breach of contract.
Board sought Eleventh Amendment immunity on the contract claim; district court held Georgia waives immunity for breach of contract in federal court, which this court reversed.
Record shows multiple staff and mental-health professionals found no threat; Zaccari believed an emergency existed but the record reflects no true emergency.
Barnes was reinstated in January 2008 after the suit, but without a predeprivation hearing at the time of withdrawal.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether Barnes had a constitutionally protected property interest in continued enrollment.	Barnes had entitlement under Policy 401.01 and the Code.	Entitlement depends on violating Code; no automatic protected interest.	Barnes had a protected property interest.
Whether predeprivation notice and a hearing were required before Barnes’s removal.	Due process requires notice and hearing before expulsion or significant discipline.	Emergency could justify predeprivation delay.	Predeprivation notice and a hearing were required; no emergency justified bypass.
Whether the alleged emergency defeated the requirement of predeprivation process.	No true emergency; actions were not warranted.	Emergency justified administrative withdrawal.	No emergency established; predeprivation process required.
Whether Georgia waived Eleventh Amendment immunity for Barnes’s contract claim against the Board.	Georgia’s waivers allow federal court to hear contract claims.	Georgia did not expressly consent to federal-court jurisdiction for contract actions.	Georgia did not waive Eleventh Amendment immunity; district court lacked jurisdiction on the contract claim.

Dixon v. Alabama State Board of Education, 294 F.2d 157 (5th Cir. 1961) (due process requires notice and some hearing before expulsion)
Goss v. Lopez, 419 U.S. 565 (U.S. 1975) (notice and a hearing required for suspensions; rudimentary safeguards)
Logan v. Zimmerman Brush Co., 455 U.S. 422 (1982) (property interest secure from removal except for cause)
Board of Regents of State Colleges v. Roth, 408 U.S. 564 (U.S. 1972) (establishes property interests in government benefits when removal is for cause)
Perry v. Sindermann, 408 U.S. 593 (U.S. 1972) (interest arising from existing rules or understandings can be protected)
Winkler v. DeKalb County, 648 F.2d 411 (5th Cir. 1981) (state may not deny property interest after longstanding practice)