ELR Citation: ELR 20825
No(s). Civ.A. 01-2441 (E.D. La. Jul 10, 2002)

The court dismisses Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), Occcupational Safety and Health Administration Act (OSHA Act), and 42 U.S.C. §1983 claims filed against a school district by school employees who were exposed to unknown toxic fumes and suffered damages. The court first holds that the employees' CERCLA claim should be dismissed. The employees failed to provide a jurisdictional basis for their CERCLA suit, and there are no possible facts that could be alleged that would give rise to a claim under CERCLA. The "response costs" that the employees pled do not come udner CERCLA's statutory definition of such costs. Even if the employees claimed that they were entitled to recovery for their personal injuries under CERCLA, the Act does not cover compensation to private parties for bodily and economic injury traditionally within the reach of state tort law. Although CERCLA does not ignore medical concerns, such medical care provisions are separate from the CERCLA §107 liability provision. The court next holds that the employees' OSHA Act claim must be dismissed because the Act does not provide a basis for jurisdiction. In addition, the court dismisses the employees' state-created danger, failure to train, and First Amendment claims under 42 U.S.C. §1983. Their state-created danger claim is analogous to a typical tort claim under state law, which is not supplanted by the Due Process Clause. Moreover, there were no constitutional violations that could give rise to either a failure to train or First Amendment claim. Because there are no viable federal claims and this matter is truly a state tort claim brought by state employees against a state governmental entity, the court declines to exercise its supplemental jurisdiction over the employees' state personal injury claims.

The full text of this decision is available from ELR (8 pp., ELR Order No. L-546).

Counsel for Plaintiffs
Robert Creely
Amato & Creely
901 Derbigny St., Gretna LA 70053
(504) 367-8181

Counsel for Defendants
Jack A. Grant
Grant & Barrow
238 Huey P. Long Ave., Gretna LA 70053
(504) 368-7888