Garcia drops civil suit against Lanning

By Jazmine Knight

St. Joseph school board member Isaura Garcia announced she is dropping her civil lawsuit against fellow board member Whitney Lanning.

The suit stems from the Feb. 26 incident at Troester Media Center, where Lanning is seen in a video following Garcia and yelling. Moments later, Lanning throws her belongings.

Garcia said she is pleased that the criminal justice system is holding Lanning accountable. Lanning pleaded guilty to the harassment charges earlier this month. The judge will now require Lanning to take anger management classes.

Garcia said that as a result, she no longer feels the need to pursue civil litigation.

She said she still believes that Lanning should resign from her position on the school board, but she is open to working together professionally with Lanning in the future.

Garcia’s full statement is as follows:

“I am pleased that our criminal justice system held Mrs. Lanning accountable for her outrageous conduct when she pled guilty to harassment earlier this month. I am also grateful the court ordered her to participate in anger management. From the beginning, my only objective was to see that she was held accountable for her inexcusable actions. The criminal justice system has now held Mrs. Lanning accountable, and, as a result, there is no need for me to continue to pursue civil litigation. I will continue to serve the students, staff, and community. While I remain convinced that her actions make her unfit to serve on the Board and believe she should resign, I sincerely hope that we can work together professionally for the remainder of our tenure on the Board.”