By Jon King / jking@whmi.com


More than eight years after filing a lawsuit against Hartland Consolidated Schools, a former administrator is once again set to have her day in court.

Tracey Sahouri sued the district in 2012, alleging it violated the Whistleblower Protection Act when it removed her as principal from Creekside Elementary School. Sahouri claims her removal as principal and re-assignment to a teaching position was in retaliation for reporting “irregularities” in how the district administered state-mandated student achievement tests. The district contends Sahouri’s re-assignment was based on the conclusions of a state report that determined teachers at Creekside improperly gained access to material from the tests.

Discussions over a possible settlement in the case have repeatedly failed and a trial that had been scheduled last September in Genesee County Circuit Court was adjourned after the district asked the Michigan Court of Appeals to dismiss the lawsuit and impose sanctions on Sahouri for her “failure to timely provide discovery of audio recordings” and her “destruction of text messages.” The recordings in question involve conversations Sahouri reportedly recorded on her cell phone, but only came to light in 2017.

The Michigan Court of Appeals determined in February that while withholding the existence of the audio recordings by Sahouri and her attorney, Tom Pabst, was not proper, it did not merit dismissing the case. A new trial date has now been set for August 11th.