A Marion County judge has dismissed Indiana’s top school official’s lawsuit against the members of the State Board of Education. Judge Louis Rosenberg ruled Friday afternoon that state superintendent Glenda Ritz wasn’t authorized to file it in the first place.
Ritz was chairing a meeting of the State Board at the moment Rosenberg handed down his decision. His ruling didn’t touch on the merits of Ritz’s case against the Board — she charged they had violated state open meetings law.
Instead, the judge sided with the Indiana Attorney General’s office, which filed a motion to block the suit, saying only its lawyers could represent elected officials in state court. Ritz’s lawyers had argued that doesn’t mean Attorney General Greg Zoeller should have the ability to effectively block the state superintendent from the courts.
However, Rosenberg says previous rulings from the State Supreme Court make his decision clear.
Kyle Stokes reports for StateImpact Indiana