Lauren Berrios

In what may be the first discrimination case of its kind to go to a verdict, a New York jury has decided that the principal of a Long Island elementary school did not fire a teacher because he perceived her to be a witch.

Lauren Berrios, 37, alleged the born-again Christian principal forced her out of Hampton Bays Elementary School after accusing her of practicing the Wicca religion and teaching it to her students. She had, among other things, taught fifth graders about the Salem, Mass., witch trials.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act does not specifically protect those who are “perceived” to belong to a particular religion and federal courts in Georgia and Tennessee have dismissed such claims.

But during the trial of Berrios's case, U.S. District Judge Leonard D. Wexler said he would instruct the jury on both the “perceived religious claim” and a separate claim that she was fired for being Jewish –- her actual religion.

“In the event that the jury finds in favor of Plaintiff as to the perceived religion claim, such a finding wil be clear and can be the subject of appeal,” he explained in his order. “In the event that this court or the Court of Appeals holds that no such claim exists under Title VII, the jury's findings can be reversed, the remainder of the jury verdict can stand and there will be no need for a new trial.”

The jury deliberated for only an hour before returning with a defense verdict. The school district's attorney had argued that Berrios made up the witchcraft allegations and was actually fired for erratic behavior and poor performance.

The defense “made it clear there were other issues,” one juror said.

If Berrios was a Wiccan, she could have brought a First Amendment claim. But as Wexler noted, “Plaintiff denies that she is a member of the Wiccan religion and disavows any connection with witchcraft.”

Berrios testified that born-again Christians at Hampton Bays were intent on converting students to their faith and that Principal Anthony Albano called her into his office “and said I was enticing the kids into learning about witchcraft, magic and pornography.”

“He accused her explicitly and essentially of being a witch,” Berrios attorney John Ray told the jury in his opening statement.

In the earlier Tennessee case -- Butler v. Potter, 345 F.Supp.2d 844 (2004) –- a district judge dismissed the perceived belief claim of a postal worker. In Uddin v. Universal Avionics, a magistrate judge in Georgia ruled that a man who claimed he was fired for being of Middle Eastern ethnicity could not pursue a claim for perceived race or national origin discrimination.

Despite those precedents, it only "occurred" to Wexler during the trial that "a claim based upon a 'perceived' religious belief may not state a viable claim under Title VII." There is no record either of the defense bringing a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim.

By Matthew Heller
3/14/07