Taijeron v. Swanson

District Court, D. Guam·Decided August 11, 2025·No. 1:25-cv-00017·Unknown

Opinion

Case No. 1:25-cv-00017 Plaintiff, v. MEMORANDUM DECISION DENYING DEFENDANT’S MOTION KENNETH ERIK SWANSON, Ph.D., in his TO DISMISS AND PLAINTIFF’S official capacity as Superintendent for the AMENDED MOTION FOR Guam Department of Education, PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION Defendant.

I. INTRODUCTION Plaintiff Logan Taijeron is a public high school student diagnosed with cerebral palsy who requires the use of a wheelchair. (Verif. Compl. 3, ECF No. 1.) Taijeron initiated this disability discrimination action under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and Guam anti-discrimination statutes for declaratory and injunctive relief against the Superintendent of the Guam Department of Education (id. at 2); Taijeron seeks an operational elevator so that he can access the second floor of his high school– Southern High School (“SHS”) (see id. at 6). From July 28 to 29, 2025, the court held an evidentiary hearing on 1) Defendant Kenneth Erik Swanson’s motion to dismiss Taijeron’s complaint pursuant to Rules 12(b)(1) and 12(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (MTD, ECF No. 15) and 2) Taijeron’s amended motion for a preliminary injunction (Am. PI Mot., ECF No. 21). (ECF Nos. 30–31.) After reviewing the filings, considering the legal authorities, evaluating the witness’ testimony and admitted evidence, and hearing oral argument, the court DENIED both Swanson’s motion to dismiss and Taijeron’s amended motion for a preliminary injunction. The court now issues this decision to memorialize its reasoning. On May 12, 2025, Swanson moved to dismiss Taijeron’s complaint on two grounds. First, Swanson argued that dismissal was warranted under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6) (“Rule 12(b)(6)”) for failure to state a claim, based on Taijeron’s failure to exhaust administrative remedies available under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”). (MTD 5– 13.) Second, Swanson argued that dismissal was warranted under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(1) (“Rule 12(b)(1)”) for lack of subject matter jurisdiction, based on the mootness of Taijeron’s claims in light of the remedial actions undertaken by the Guam Department of Education (“GDOE”). (Id. at 2–5.) Taijeron opposed the motion on both grounds (MTD Opp’n, ECF No. 18), to which Swanson replied (MTD Reply, ECF No. 24). The court denied both the Rule 12(b)(6) and 12(b)(1) bases for Swanson’s motion to dismiss. (July 29 Mins., ECF No. 31.) A. The court denied Swanson’s Rule 12(b)(6) motion because the gravamen of Taijeron’s complaint does not allege violations of the IDEA.

Although Taijeron’s complaint expressly only alleges violations of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (“Section 504”), and Guam anti-discrimination statutes (Verif. Compl. 2), Swanson nonetheless maintained that Taijeron was required to exhaust administrative remedies available under the IDEA before initiating the instant civil action. (MTD 8–10.) In opposition, Taijeron argued that the gravamen of his complaint does not concern the denial of a Free Appropriate Public Education (“FAPE”) under the IDEA and thus administrative exhaustion is not required according to the Supreme Court’s directive in Fry v. Napoleon Cmty. Schs., 580 U.S. 154 (2017). (MTD Opp’n 20–25.) Instead, Taijeron emphasized that he is “seeking declaratory and injunctive relief for the denial of vertical access at SHS in violation of the ADA and Section 504.” (Id. at 24–25.) In reply, Swanson argued that Fry, 580 U.S. 154 is factually distinguishable, and that Taijeron does indeed seek relief regarding the provision of educational services under the IDEA. (MTD Reply 2–3.) 1. Legal Standards Rule 12(b)(6) allows a defendant to move for dismissal when the complaint fails to plead “enough facts to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.” Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570 (2007). “A claim has facial plausibility when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (internal citation omitted). This plausibility standard “asks for more than a sheer possibility that a defendant has acted unlawfully.” Id. (internal citation omitted). “In the rare event that a failure to exhaust is clear on the face of the complaint, a defendant may move for dismissal under Rule 12(b)(6).” Albino v. Baca, 747 F.3d 1162, 1166 (9th Cir. 2014). “Otherwise, defendants must produce evidence proving failure to exhaust in order to carry their burden.” Id. Exhaustion is required only when a complaint seeks relief under the IDEA for the denial of a FAPE, not when it seeks relief for the denial of equal access to a public institution. McIntyre v. Eugene Sch. Dist. 4J, 976 F.3d 902, 916–17 (9th Cir. 2020). Whereas the IDEA’s “goal is to provide each child with meaningful access to education by offering individualized instruction and related services appropriate to her unique needs[,] . . . Title II of the ADA and § 504 of the Rehabilitation Act cover people with disabilities of all ages, and do so both inside and outside schools.” Fry, 580 U.S. at 170 (internal quotations and citations omitted). Title II of the ADA and Section 504 “aim to root out disability-based discrimination, enabling each covered person . . . to participate equally to all others in public facilities and federally funded programs.” Id. (internal citation omitted). “In short, the IDEA guarantees individually tailored educational services, while Title II and § 504 promise non-discriminatory access to public institutions,” which includes public schools. Id. at 170–71. In Fry, the Supreme Court offered the following guidance for discerning whether the “gravamen” of a plaintiff’s complaint concerns the denial of a FAPE under the IDEA and thus administrative exhaustion is required: One clue to whether the gravamen of a complaint against a school concerns the denial of a FAPE, or instead addresses disability-based discrimination, can come from asking a pair of hypothetical questions. First, could the plaintiff have brought essentially the same claim if the alleged conduct had occurred at a public facility that was not a school––say, a public theater or library? And second, could an adult at the school––say, an employee or visitor––have pressed essentially the same grievance? When the answer to those questions is yes, a complaint that does not expressly allege the denial of a FAPE is also unlikely to be truly about that subject; after all, in those situations there is no FAPE obligation and yet the same basic suit could go forward. But when the answer is no, then the complaint probably does concern a FAPE, even if it does not explicitly say so; for the FAPE requirement is all that explains why only a child in the school setting (not an adult in that setting or a child in some other) has a viable claim. Id. at 171. 2. Analysis The court denied the Rule 12(b)(6) basis for Swanson’s motion to dismiss because it found that the gravamen of Taijeron’s complaint concerns the denial of

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