55 West Monroe St.
, Suite 800
Chicago, IL 60603-5144
JOSEPH J. PERKOSKI
[email protected]
MATTHEW M. SWIFT
[email protected]
September 26, 2023 VIA E-MAIL
PRIVILEGED AND CONFIDENTIAL
Dr. Linda Yonke
Dr. Raymond Lechner
Co-Interim Superintendents
Hinsdale Township High School District No. 86
[email protected] [email protected] Re: Levinthal Allegations
Dear Dr. Yonke and Dr. Lechner:
As you know, on September 12, 2023, parent Daniel Levinthal sent an email to you both, copying the
personal email of Debbie Levinthal, his wife and a now-former Board member. The email included
allegations that a District administrator (known from context to be former Superintendent Tammy Prentiss)
made “defamatory” statements and disclosed information about the Levinthals’ student to Board President
Catherine Greenspon in violation of the student’s privacy under FERPA, ISSRA, IDEA, and the Mental
Health and Developmental Disabilities Confidentiality Act. The email also alleged that these acts were
“potential acts of retaliation for my wife’s work on the Board” by the administrator in violation of an
unspecified federal law. The email also alleges that a failure to fully investigate the sharing of his student’s
information is a violation of his student’s Fourteenth Amendment rights.
On September 24, 2023, Mrs. Levinthal informed our firm that any future correspondence should be
directed to Deborah Weiss. Because Ms. Weiss is an attorney who frequently represents parents with regard
to special education matters, we anticipate that Ms. Weiss may represent Mr. and Mrs. Levinthal with regard
to a potential claim. We also note that Mr. Levinthal’s allegations, if made public, could create a risk of
litigation based on an alleged breach of a non-disparagement provision of the District’s retirement
agreement with Tammy Prentiss.
While the District has not received formal notice of a claim in connection with the allegations, we believe
it is necessary to ensure evidence is preserved in anticipation of litigation. This letter addresses the District’s
legal duty to save and preserve documents, electronically stored information, and physical evidence in its
possession or control relevant to Mr. Levinthal’s allegations and any lawsuit that may result. This duty
requires the District to suspend any scheduled records purging or destruction activities related to any
documents that may be relevant to the allegations.
The District is required to save and preserve all notes, correspondence, e-mails, text messages, voicemails,
minutes, video or audio recordings, and other records, whether saved in electronic, hardcopy, or any other
format, which may relate to a claim by Mr. or Mrs. Levinthal about the allegations described above,
including but not limited to the alleged statements made by Ms. Prentiss about them, their student, and their
interactions with the District, as well as the investigation, Board discussion, and any other steps taken
Robbins Schwartz • Attorneys at Law p. 312.332.7760 | f. 312.332.7768 | www.robbins-schwartz.com
Dr. Linda Yonke
Dr. Raymond Lechner
September 26, 2023
Page 2
related to the allegations against Ms. Prentiss. This duty to save and preserve encompasses all documents
and electronically stored information in the District’s possession or under its control, including those stored
on servers and at off-site locations, as well as those documents in the possession and control of employees.
Based upon this legal obligation to preserve documents and records, we recommend that you place a
retention hold on all electronically stored information and suspend any scheduled records purging, file
maintenance, archiving, disk cleaning or swiping, or destruction activities until further consultation with
our firm.
Note that the District could be subject to a “spoliation of evidence” claim if it fails to save and preserve any
relevant documents and records, which could potentially result in the court imposing significant penalties
against the District, including barring some of the District’s defenses. The best way to eliminate the risk of
such a claim is to make a full backup of all files, including network files, emails, electronic documents,
surveillance video footage, and phone records. This backup should be stored in a documented, separate,
unshared, and inaccessible part of the network or on an external hard drive. The District may want to
consider utilizing a forensic consultant to take and store a system image of the network.
In addition, the District should ensure that a thorough and exhaustive search for all relevant documents and
items is conducted as soon as possible and that all resulting documents and items are preserved for later
use. We recommend searching the District’s electronic files and email system for any documents and items
that contain the following items since May 1, 2023 through the date of the search:
• Prentiss AND Levinthal • Levinthal AND IDEA • Levinthal AND special
• Prentiss AND privacy • Levinthal AND 504 • Levinthal AND privacy
• Prentiss AND confidential • Levinthal AND FERPA • Levinthal AND
• Prentiss AND “student • Levinthal AND ISSRA confidential
information” • Levinthal AND student • Levinthal AND “5:120”
• Prentiss AND “5:120” • Levinthal AND child • “student privacy” AND
• Prentiss AND retirement • Levinthal AND SPED suspension
After the District has completed its search, all documents and information should be stored in a secure
location. Please forward a copy of any documents and information to our Chicago office.
The District’s duty to save and preserve the identified documents and items also includes a “duty to
supplement,” meaning that if, after the initial search is concluded, additional responsive documents or items
are identified as relevant, they must also be saved and preserved. Accordingly, please notify our office of
any additional responsive documents or items and forward them to our office as they become available.
You should also notify any current Board members, other administrators, or staff who may possess or have
access to any of the documents or items identified above of the obligation to search for and retain the
documents or items identified in this letter. We will provide additional advice with regard to notifying the
individuals whom we believe should search for and retain any such documents or items, based on our prior
work for the District. We also have sent a more general letter to Mrs. Levinthal under separate cover about
her continuing duties as a former Board member with regard to District records and maintaining the
confidentiality of privileged and otherwise private District information. Please provide us with verification
in writing when the District has completed the search for documents and information, including
electronically stored information.
Attorneys at Law
Dr. Linda Yonke
Dr. Raymond Lechner
September 26, 2023
Page 3
After the search has been completed, please advise us in writing if the District previously possessed any of
the above documents, but no longer has such documents in its possession, and explain why the District is
no longer in possession of those documents.
Finally, all communications between our office and current Board members and District administrators
related to these allegations are privileged and confidential attorney-client communications and, therefore,
not subject to disclosure. However, communications with any other individual, including former Board
members, would not be protected communications and could be subject to disclosure during subsequent
litigation.
Accordingly, we request that Board members and District administrators do not communicate with any
third parties about this matter unless requested to do so by our office. In addition, we recommend that Board
members and District administrators refrain from discussing the subject matter of the allegations with other
Board members or District employees, including but not limited to written and electronic communications,
except as part of a closed session or attorney-client communication.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.
Very truly yours,
ROBBINS SCHWARTZ
By: Joseph J. Perkoski Matthew M. Swift
cc: Catherine Greenspon, Board President
Attorneys at Law
