Joanie Garratt, a former substitute teacher at Beverly Hills High School, voluntarily dismissed her lawsuit against the Beverly Hills Unified School District on Monday, Sept. 14, just 28 days after filing it.

The dismissal was "without prejudice," meaning it does not prevent Garratt from refiling the case. The Los Angeles Superior Court's register of actions does not state why she dropped the suit, according to the Beverly Hills Standard.

Garratt submitted her dismissal request on Friday, Sept. 11. The court entered it on Sept. 14 in case number 26STCV25994, vacating a case management conference that had been set for Feb. 1, 2027, and a separate hearing on failure to file proof of service. Both proceedings were listed as "Not Held — Vacated by Court."

The dismissal was not a ruling on the merits of Garratt's allegations.

What the lawsuit alleged

Garratt filed the complaint on Aug. 17, naming BHUSD and unnamed defendants designated as Does 1 through 10. The case was assigned to Judge Kevin C. Brazile in Department 310 at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse.

Garratt, who retired from full-time teaching after more than 30 years with the district, returned to Beverly Hills High in November 2024 for a substitute assignment teaching Advanced Placement U.S. history. Her attorney, V. James DeSimone, told Patch she was terminated Nov. 13, 2024, after an assistant superintendent cited a Facebook post as the reason.

The post followed a campus rally celebrating Donald Trump's election victory the day after the November 2024 presidential election. The lawsuit alleged violations of the First Amendment and California Labor Code, and asserted Garratt wrote the post outside work hours on a private account.

According to Century City-Westwood News, Assistant Superintendent Matthew Horvath emailed Garratt six days after the post to terminate her employment. Garratt had also filed a 2024 administrative claim against the district seeking at least $50,000 and potentially reinstatement.

District's response

When the lawsuit was filed in August, BHUSD said in a statement to Patch that the district does not terminate employees for political statements made on their own time and called any assertion otherwise false. The district said it looked forward to the facts coming to light through the legal process.

Then-Superintendent Michael Bregy disputed Garratt's account in December 2024, saying she had not been dismissed and remained a substitute teacher in the district. "No action was taken to dismiss her or any other employee in the last month," Bregy said at the time.

The district has disputed Garratt's account of her departure since 2024, saying she was not dismissed and remained eligible to work as a substitute. Garratt's lawsuit alleged that she was terminated from her substitute assignment because of the Facebook post.