[Teacher317]

"The Constitution protects the public, including public employees, from deprivations of life, liberty, or property without due process.  For a public employee to be entitled to due process, the public employer’s action must adversely affect a liberty or property interest.  Property interests are usually created by state law, such as a civil service system or a contract.  A public employee’s liberty interest can be triggered by a discharge under certain publicly stigmatizing circumstances."

Good enough? ROFL

[gusty]

Another reason we are all going to hell in a handbasket, unionized public employees. Thank god in the dreaded private sector we can fire lowlives swiftly and surely.

[Colofornian]

"The Constitution protects the public, including public employees, from deprivations of life, liberty, or property without due process.

Paterno is still alive...nobody's boiled him in a pot...yet...
Liberty? He's not behind bars; and no charges have been filed against him...he's free to roam like us...but hey, he'll need a ticket to get in the game...like us...Certain rights belong only to CURRENT coaches.
Property? What? Has somebody already sued him and won? Even then, that would be due process, wouldn't it?

Even if you could make it stick that Paterno has somehow lost liberty, even you just posted: "A public employee’s liberty interest can be triggered by a discharge under certain publicly stigmatizing circumstances."

I'd say these were "publicly stigmatizing circumstances," wouldn't you?

As for the underlying point of quoting that, are you claiming that football coaches & university officials with contracts are unfire-able? You're not claiming that little diddy, are you?

[fortheDeclaration]

A public employee’s liberty interest can be triggered by a discharge under certain publicly stigmatizing circumstances."

I hope you don't teach reading.

Note the word 'certain', not ALL.

No one has been denied any due process.

No go back to the ACLU, where you came from.