Davis v. Glanton

OPINION OF THE COURT

BECKER, Circuit Judge.

This is an appeal by certain trustees of the Barnes Foundation, who are also African-American citizens. It requires us to determine whether a state court defamation action filed against them by certain commissioners of Lower Merion Township, alleging that the Trustees had falsely accused the Commissioners of racist official conduct, is removable to federal district court pursuant to the civil rights removal statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1443(1), on the ground that the defamation action represents an attempt to retaliate against the Trustees for exercising…