JACKSON — A Mississippi appeals court has ordered the reinstatement of a Hinds County assistant principal who was fired after reading a children’s book containing potty humor to a second-grade class, ruling the school district lacked sufficient evidence to justify his termination.
In a decision issued Jan. 27, the Mississippi Court of Appeals reversed the Hinds County School Board and chancery court rulings that upheld the firing of Toby Price, an assistant principal at Gary Road Elementary School. The court found the board’s decision was arbitrary, capricious and unsupported by substantial evidence.
Price was terminated in March 2022 after reading “I Need a New Butt!” during a Read Across America Day event when the scheduled reader failed to appear for a Zoom session. The illustrated children’s book uses humor involving references to “butts” and “farts.”
The court ordered Price reinstated and sent the case back to chancery court to determine whether he is entitled to back pay.
According to the ruling, Price stepped in at the last minute to read to the class and selected the book from his personal collection. Later that day, he was placed on administrative leave and fired two days later for allegedly violating the Mississippi Educator Code of Ethics by acting unprofessionally and exposing students to inappropriate content.
The appeals court disagreed, noting there was no evidence Price violated “generally recognized professional standards” or maintained an inappropriate relationship with students. The court emphasized that the school district failed to prove the book was prohibited or that Price had notice it was inappropriate.
The ruling also highlighted that the school’s library contained books with similar content, including illustrations of nudity and repeated use of the word “butt,” and that Price had previously read a similar book by the same author to students without discipline. That earlier reading was recorded and posted on the school’s official Facebook page.
The district argued the book caused a negative impact on a student who repeatedly said the word “butt” after the reading. However, the court found no evidence that any student was embarrassed or harmed and said such testimony was insufficient to justify termination.
“The record simply lacks substantial evidence,” the court wrote, concluding the punishment was inconsistent with how similar content had been treated by the district.
The appeals court declined to address Price’s constitutional claims, including alleged violations of due process and free speech, saying the case could be resolved on other grounds.
Price had served as assistant principal at Gary Road Elementary since 2018 and had worked in education for more than two decades.
