Wayne Co. School Dist. ordered to pay $1.8M in sixteenth section land suit

WAYNE COUNTY, Miss. (WDAM) - A judge ordered the Wayne County School District to pay more than $1.8 million to the Quitman School District Thursday.

The Quitman School District and the Quitman School Board filed the lawsuit against the district and individual superintendents and school board members on Dec. 29, 2011 in the Chancery Court of Wayne County.

The Quitman School District sought to recover money it claimed was owed by the Wayne County School District from oil wells located on sixteenth section school trust land in a township shared by the two districts.

The lawsuit alleged that WCSD failed to hand over accurate accounting and a proportional share of trust proceeds, funds, revenue and royalties from the shared land for a period of more than 10 years.

On Thursday, the Wayne County Chancery Court ordered the Wayne County School District to pay a total of $1,805,666 with an interest rate of 1.2% for each year from and after Dec. 31, 2018 until paid in full.

Of the total awarded to the Quitman School District, $703,692 represents principal funds and $1,101,974 represents combine expendable funds and accrued interest.