A.P., a minor, by and through Craig and Susan R. Powers, Craig and Susan R. Powers, Plaintiff-Appellants, v. WOODSTOCK BOARD OF EDUCATION, Defendant-Appellee.
No. 08-4632-cv.
United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit.
March 23, 2010.
556 F.3d 202
PRESENT: ROBERT D. SACK, RICHARD C. WESLEY, Circuit Judges, RICHARD K. EATON, Judge.***
SUMMARY ORDER
Appellant appeals from a judgment of the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York (Sharpe, J.), which denied injunctive relief and dismissed his complaint. We assume the parties’ familiarity with the underlying facts, the procedural history, and the issues presented for review.
We review a district court‘s grant of a motion to dismiss for lack of standing de novo. Fulton v. Goord, 591 F.3d 37, 41 (2d Cir.2009). With the minor exception of some First Amendment claims not at issue here, a person‘s status as an American citizen or taxpayer is insufficient to confer on him or her standing to bring a lawsuit seeking to hold a government action or a statute unconstitutional in the absence of an articulable injury-in-fact that is distinct from the injury suffered by all such citizens or taxpayers. See, e.g., Hein v. Freedom From Religion Found., Inc., 551 U.S. 587, 593, 127 S.Ct. 2553, 168 L.Ed.2d 424 (2007) (“[T]he payment of taxes is generally not enough to establish standing to challenge an action taken by the Federal Government.“); Schlesinger v. Reservists Comm. to Stop the War, 418 U.S. 208, 226-27, 94 S.Ct. 2925, 41 L.Ed.2d 706 (1974) (finding a person‘s interest as a citizen “too abstract to constitute a ‘case or controversy’ appropriate for judicial resolution“). The district court was correct that Appellant does not have standing, and thus federal courts have no jurisdiction over his claims. See DaimlerChrysler Corp. v. Cuno, 547 U.S. 332, 344-45, 126 S.Ct. 1854, 164 L.Ed.2d 589 (2006).
For the foregoing reasons, the judgment of the district court is hereby AFFIRMED.
*** The Honorable Richard K. Eaton, of the United States Court of International Trade, sitting by designation.
Linda L. Yoder, Shipman & Goodwin LLP, Hartford, CT (Peter J. Murphy, on the brief.), for Appellee.
PRESENT: RICHARD C. WESLEY, DEBRA ANN LIVINGSTON, Circuit Judges, RICHARD K. EATON, Judge.*
SUMMARY ORDER
Plaintiff-appellants Craig and Susan R. Powers (“Appellants“), on their own behalf and on behalf of their child, A.P., appeal pro se from a judgment of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut (Kravitz, J.). That judgment granted the motion of the Woodstock Board of Education (“Board“) for judgment on the record, denied Appellants’ cross-motion for judgment on the record, and dismissed Appellants’ claim under the
We review de novo the district court‘s grant of summary judgment in an IDEA case.3 See Cerra v. Pawling Cent. Sch. Dist., 427 F.3d 186, 191 (2d Cir.2005). Although a federal court reviewing administrative decisions under the IDEA must base its decision “on the preponderance of the evidence,” see
Appellants argue that the district court placed undue reliance on the Hearing Officer‘s rulings, and failed to conduct an independent review of the facts as prescribed by law. But our review of the oral argument transcript and the court‘s written opinion reveals that the court conducted a careful and independent review of the record. The district court stated that it had read the parties’ briefs, “all of the exhibits,” and “most of the words of every transcript.” The court noted that it had reviewed the extensive transcripts from “top to bottom,” and its questioning reveals that it was fully familiar with the record. It carefully considered the Appellants’ claims on appeal, and referred to facts outside of those found in the Hearing Officer‘s Final Decision and Order where necessary.
In addition, the district court afforded the Hearing Officer‘s findings appropriate deference, particularly with respect to the testimony of A.P.‘s fourth-grade teacher, Mary Jane Fulco. The administrative proceedings consisted of twelve days of hearings and over 200 exhibits, and the parties submitted both post-hearing and reply briefs to the Hearing Officer. The Hear-
The Appellants also argued in their complaint and at oral argument that the Hearing Officer failed to acknowledge that, with respect to the assignment of a teacher‘s aide for A.P. in accordance with the IEP, the school “didn‘t even have a TA to give him for that period of time.” But the record evidence demonstrates that A.P. made improvements throughout his sixth-grade year despite that fact. His report card reflected As, Bs, and Cs, and showed some improvement in language arts, math, and science. A.P.‘s Connecticut Mastery Test scores indicated that he was performing at goal in math and reading, and was proficient in writing.
Furthermore, although A.P. was removed before the end of the marking period, A.P.‘s lowest third quarter grade was a “C+.” His homeroom teacher, Ms. Depasse, testified that A.P. made improvements in his social and organizational skills throughout the fall of his sixth-grade year. Ms. Depasse testified that she made modifications to his work where necessary, and saw A.P. as being as capable as “many other students” in her classes. Ms. Stringer, A.P.‘s social studies teacher, testified that A.P.‘s attention problems decreased throughout the year; and Ms. Manning, his special education teacher, stated that he progressed in tracking his assignments and remembering to pack his materials. Moreover, the school made additional efforts to help A.P. attain the goals in his IEP. When Mrs. Powers informed the school that the absence of an aide resulted in “a few frustrating evenings” due to forgotten homework, Ms. Manning volunteered to help A.P. pack his bag at the end of the day to ensure that he had the necessary materials for his homework. In light of this evidence, the Board‘s actions did not constitute a material failure of implementing the IEP.4 See Van Duyn ex rel. Van Duyn v. Baker Sch. Dist. 5J, 502 F.3d 811, 821 (9th Cir.2007); Neosho R-V Sch. Dist. v. Clark, 315 F.3d 1022, 1027 n.3 (8th Cir.2003); Houston Indep. Sch. Dist. v. Bobby R., 200 F.3d 341, 349 (5th Cir.2000).
We have considered the Appellants’ remaining arguments and find them to be without merit, and accordingly affirm the district court‘s grant of the Board‘s motion for judgment on the record for substantially the same reasons set out in its thorough and well-reasoned opinion.
For the foregoing reasons, the judgment of the district court is hereby AFFIRMED.
* The Honorable Richard K. Eaton, of the United States Court of International Trade, sitting by designation.