In 2022, Amie Villarini, a former Iowa City West tennis coach, filed a lawsuit against the Iowa City Community School District. She argued that statements made by two former students during a public comment period at a school board meeting were false and defamatory. Villarini, who joined the tennis program in 2013, had requested on many occasions that the school district remove the recording of the meeting and redact the minutes. She also claimed that the district wrongfully terminated her or breached the terms of a contract by doing so.

Lawsuits and School Board Comments

At the 2022 board meeting, the first student described being touched in inappropriate ways by Villarini. She and a second student criticized the district's handling of the situation, stating that administrators didn't adequately address their concerns after initial complaints in 2021. An investigation found that claims including "unwanted physical contact," favoritism, retaliation, and insensitivity were "unfounded" but not explicitly "false." The investigation determined that while some actions occurred, they were "not violative of any ICCSD policy."For instance, there was acknowledged physical contact between Villarini and the players, but it was determined to be not inappropriate. Villarini was placed on administrative leave the day after the students' comments. The differing parties disagreed on the reason for her leave. Villarini believed it was a "knee-jerk" reaction, while the district justified it after staff learned of a social media post by Villarini that appeared to target the students.Villarini was not a full-time district employee and her contract expired in summer 2022 and was not renewed. Attorneys for the school district filed a motion for "summary judgment," and Judge Andrew Chappell issued the court's ruling in July 2023.

Defamation Claims and Fair-Reporting Rules

In his ruling, Chappell wrote that the defamation claims "fail as a matter of law" for multiple reasons. The district had a legal obligation to keep and publish detailed minutes of the meeting. Iowa City's school district is afforded protections under the fair-report privilege as district staff are accurately reporting the sentiment of the students. The appeals court largely agreed, stating that the fair-report privilege furthers the public's interest in having information about official proceedings and public meetings.Villarini disputed the Johnson County District Court's ruling on the fair-report privilege, saying appellate courts have "never... adopted" it and it often applies to the news media. However, the appeals court denied her arguments, citing century-old precedent and pointing to the legal protections for government entities in publishing detailed minutes or unedited meeting videos. The court agreed that the school district should be immune from liability for republishing potential defamatory statements.

Ex-Coach and Public Policy

Chappell also wrote that Villarini couldn't point to a "clearly defined and well-recognized public policy" to dispute the district's decision not to renew her coaching contract or prove a breach of contract or wrongful discharge in Iowa. One could argue that it would be preferable for a school board to stand by its employee under public scrutiny when allegations are unfounded, but this opinion isn't sufficient to establish a public policy.The appeals court seconded Chappell's decision, stating that the policy must be more than a "broad declaration as to what is generally in the public interest." Villarini couldn't meet this threshold as her proffered public policy wasn't grounded in concrete sources of positive law but on her own notions of fairness.Ryan Hansen covers local government and crime for the Press-Citizen. He can be reached at rhansen@press-citizen.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @ryanhansen01.