The Tribune editorial staff

Enough is enough. The legal battle has gone on for months between former Rock Hill superintendent Lloyd Evans and the Rock Hill School District.

Lawrence County Common Pleas Judge Richard Walton heard the case Wednesday and will rule on it by the end of the week.

The case is a tangle of legal disputes that has been mired in double talk, technicalities and he-said, she-said allegations. Judge Walton certainly has his hands full.

Evans' attorney has argued that board members acted illegally when they met for a special February session and voted to non-renew Evans' contract. If it was an illegal session, any action taken would be invalid. Evans' attorney also alleged the board made the decision to non-renew the contract behind closed doors, also illegal under state law.

On the other hand,

the board's attorney contends that Evans' five-year contract that was awarded in November 2003 was invalid because it was awarded without a public hearing or public comment period. The attorney added that the former board did not deliberate on Evans' non-renewal in the closed session and that the new board's decision to seek counsel was perfectly legal.

Regardless of what the judge rules, it is time for both sides to accept his decision and move on.

If Walton says Evans gets his job back, so be it. The community should rally behind that and put the children, their education and their future at the forefront - where it belongs - once again.

If Walton says that the board acted properly, then Evans and his supporters should respect that decision as well. Likewise, the community should rally behind the board and put the children, their education and their future at the forefront - where it belongs - once again.

We hope that neither side decides that an appeal is the way to go.

The battle has gone on far too long and we feel that if the conflict continues the true casualties will only be the children of the Rock Hill School District.

Win, lose or draw. It is time for a cease fire. Not for Evans' sake. Not for the school board's sake. Not even for the taxpayers who will foot part of the legal bill.

The war has to stop now for the sake of the children and the sake of the future.