Litigation
Lawsuits push radical school-funding reform
October 13, 2010
Fermin Leal, The Orange County Register
Educators, parents and
activists are pressing two lawsuits against the state, hoping to
radically reform how California funds schools – much as did a
landmark case in the 1960s that helped create the system now in
place. Both lawsuits argue that the complex system inadequately
funds education for all students – an argument also central to the
1968 Serrano v. Priest case that started California down the road
to equalizing funding among poor and wealthy districts. The Serrano
case led to increased state control over schools, a status
solidified by Prop. 13's changes to the property tax
system...
ACLU suit: 6 O.C. school districts charge illegal fees
September 10, 2010
Fermin Leal, The Orange County Register
The American Civil
Liberties Union on Friday sued the state and Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger for allowing public school districts – including six
in Orange County – to charge fees for books and other essential
educational supplies. The class-action suit says the districts are
charging students for text books, Advanced Placement exams, science
lab supplies, P.E. uniforms, cheerleading outfits and dozens of
other school-related costs. The suit claims these fees violate the
state Constitution’s provision for a free public education. The
suit lists 32 districts, including Capistrano Unified, Orange
Unified, Los Alamitos Unified, Anaheim Union, Irvine Unified and
Tustin Unified...
Union Sympathizers in CUSD Suffer Three Humiliating Court Losses
September 07, 2010
Tony Beall, Red County All three lawsuits brought by
supporters of the so-called "Children First" organization (a front
for the public employee unions in CUSD) were just rejected in their
entirety by Orange County Superior Court Judge Michael Brenner on
the merits, vindicating the truthfulness of the official ballot
statements submitted by the conservative CUSD Reform
Trustees. In all, five separate lawsuits were heard in OC
Superior Court, on the merits, and the conservatives won decisive
victories in all five. I just published the story of the first two lawsuits
in which the conservatives
prevailed over the leaders of the union’s so called “Children
First” organization – and against their endorsed candidate, John
Alpay. This is the story of the three baseless lawsuits
brought by desperate union sympathizers against the conservative
incumbents and their supporters...
Intellectuals must 'push back,' urges teacher sued by student
September 04, 2010
Scott Martindale, The Orange County Register
High school history teacher
James Corbett, found to have violated a student's First Amendment
rights last year by disparaging Christianity in class, on Saturday
urged "intellectuals of all political persuasions" to push back
against the "right-wing authoritarianism" that is eroding mutual
tolerance and democracy in America. Speaking at a convention in
Irvine hosted by the Orange County chapter of the high IQ society
Mensa, Corbett railed against what he described as
anti-intellectual conservatives who rely on "submission" and
"cherished cultural myths" to maintain power and influence…
School district dropped from anti-Christian lawsuit appeal
June 24, 2010
Scott Martindale, The Orange County Register
The Mission Viejo teen who
is seeking a stronger court ruling against his former high school
teacher for violating his First Amendment rights is dropping the
portion of his appeal targeting the school district as a liable
party. Chad Farnan, a graduating senior at Capistrano Valley High
School, will continue his federal appeals case against teacher
James Corbett for disparaging Christianity in class. But Farnan has
decided against appealing the part of the May 2009 court decision
that found the Capistrano Unified School District not liable for
the veteran teacher's actions…
Unions lose battles; war continues over pensions
June 13, 2010
Editorial, The Orange County Register
Orange County voters won
the first battle, in what could be a long war with public employee
unions, when they soundly defeated union-backed candidates in the
races for sheriff-coroner and 4th District supervisor. In both
cases, voters turned down union-backed candidates by ample margins
despite combined county union spending of nearly $1
million...
School choice to high court
May 26, 2010
Editorial: The Orange County Register
Education reform advocates
should have been encouraged Monday as the Supreme Court announced
its intention to decide a case where the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of
Appeals called into question the constitutionality of a
Arizona
school-choice tax credit
program that provides mostly disadvantaged students with
scholarships to private schools. Arizona's 13-year-old program is
pretty straightforward. Private donors are given a
dollar-for-dollar state income tax credit for contributions made to
school-tuition organizations. These private, not-for-profit STOs
distribute the money as scholarships to students interested in
attending private schools, some of them secular and some
religious…
Lawsuit moves school duel to new level
May 25, 2010
Dan Walters, The Sacramento Bee California's perpetual
public debate over the sad condition of its K-12 schools entered a
new and potentially climactic phase last week when a coalition of
education groups filed a lawsuit alleging that the entire 6
million-student system is unconstitutional. The suit, filed in
Alameda County, declares that the state "has failed its
constitutional obligation to support its public schools in a way
that ensures that all students are provided an opportunity to meet
the state's academic goals."
Citizen Victory Over Teachers' Union in Texas
May 24, 2010
Larry Sand, Red County On May 14, Texas Attorney General Greg
Abbott delivered an opinion that could have national educational
and political ramifications for years to come. In short, the
decision stated that school districts may not fund political action
committees of teacher unions via payroll deductions … What are the
ramifications of the ruling for those of us in California? As one
who worked on the Citizen Power Initiative – a measure that if
passed would have accomplished the same thing as the Texas AG
ruling - I will tell you that this is great news...
State Faces Multiple Suits of Failure to Adequately Fund Schools
May 21, 2010
David Greenwald, The People's Vanguard of
Davis Given the
state of California's economy and cutbacks to education, perhaps it
is not surprising that several different groups are threatening to
sue. On Thursday a lawsuit was filed in Alameda County by the
California School Boards Association, the Association of California
School Administrators, and the California State PTA. The suit calls
for the courts to get rid of the current financing system and to
direct the governor and Legislature to create one that is sound,
stable and sufficient. They argued it prevents six million
students from receiving the education that they are entitled to
under the state's constitution. The suit contends that the state
has failed to prioritize school funding as the constitution and
Prop 98 requires. California has set some of the highest
standards in the county, but ranks nearly last among all states in
per-pupil funding and in the ratio of students to teachers,
counselors, and nurses. The result is that California
students perform poorly compared with those in other states…
Historic Lawsuit Challenges California’s Unconstitutional Education Finance System
May 21, 2010
California School Finance, YubaNet.com
May 20, 2010 - A historic
lawsuit was filed today against the State of California requesting
that the current education finance system be declared
unconstitutional and that the state be required to establish a
school finance system that provides all students an equal
opportunity to meet the academic goals set by the State. The case,
Robles-Wong, et al. v. State of California, was filed in the
Superior Court of California in Alameda County. Specifically, the
suit asks the court to compel the State to align its school finance
system-its funding policies and mechanisms-with the educational
program that the State has put in place. To do this, plaintiffs
allege, the State must scrap its existing finance system; do the
work to determine how much it actually costs to fund public
education to meet the state's own program requirements and the
needs of California's school children; and develop and implement a
new finance system consistent with Constitutional
requirements…
Lawsuit seeks to overhaul school finance system
May 20, 2010
Associated Press, The Orange County Register
A coalition of students,
school districts and education groups sued the state of
California
on Thursday, seeking to
force the governor and Legislature to develop a new system to fund
its cash-strapped public schools. The lawsuit asks the court to
declare the current school finance system unconstitutional because
the state doesn't provide enough money to cover its educational
mandates and programs…
Landmark ruling on teacher layoffs
May 14, 2010
Column: John Festerwald, The Educated Guess
- A Superior Court judge
has served notice to school districts statewide that the seniority
rights of teachers do not trump the fundamental right of students
to an equal opportunity for a good education. Los Angeles Superior
Court Judge William Highberger issued a preliminary injunction
Wednesday preventing any teacher layoffs for budgetary reasons at
three Los Angeles Unified middle schools where large numbers of
teachers have been given pink slips…
Ex-Capo chief's trial on indefinite hold
May 14, 2010
Scott Martindale, The Orange County Register
The court trial for
indicted ex-Capistrano Unified Superintendent James
Fleming and a
former assistant superintendent has been put on indefinite hold
while the parties await a decision from a state appeals court
concerning dismissal of some of the charges against them. Orange
County Superior Court Judge William Froeberg in February dismissed
two of the three charges against Fleming, and one of the two
charges against former Assistant Superintendent Susan McGill. Both
appealed Froeberg's decision to a state appeals court, asking that
the remaining charges also be dismissed. Prosecutors, meanwhile,
also appealed Froeberg's decision to the higher court, asking that
the dismissed charges be reinstated…
2 charges against ex-schools chief dropped
February 26, 2010
Peter Schelden, The Orange County Register
Orange County Superior
Court Judge William Froeberg on Friday dismissed two of three
charges against ex-Capistrano Unified Superintendent
James
Fleming, who was
indicted in 2007 for allegedly creating “enemies” lists of the
school district's political opponents. Froeberg said prosecutors
had insufficient evidence for count three of the indictment,
conspiracy to commit an act injurious to the public, and for count
two, urging defeat of the same recall – leaving one remaining
charge on felony misappropriation of public funds…
Judge dismisses ex-Capo district chief's $487,425 lawsuit
December 18, 2009
Scott Martindale, The Orange County Register
An Orange County judge
today tossed out a $487,425 breach-of-contract lawsuit filed by
fired Capistrano Unified Superintendent A. Woodrow Carter asking to
be paid for 18 months remaining on his three-year employment
contract. Superior Court Judge Steven Perk in Santa Ana said the
former school district chief was not entitled to money under the
terms of his contract. Carter was terminated in March in a
unanimous school board vote...
Judge denies awarding $391,150 to teacher's defense team
December 14, 2009
Scott Martindale, The Orange County Register
A federal judge today
denied awarding $391,150 in attorneys' fees and court-related costs
to the defense team for high school teacher James Corbett, sued by
a student two years ago for his anti-Christian classroom rhetoric.
U.S. District Court Judge James Selna said in an eight-page ruling
that although the Capistrano Unified School District was not liable
for Corbett's actions, Capistrano was not eligible to recover any
attorneys' fees because student Chad Farnan's lawsuit against the
school district was not simply "a baseless, vexatious claim," as
Corbett's attorneys had argued...
Ex-Capo chief's dismissal motion delayed 2-1/2 months
December 14, 2009
Scott Martindale, The Orange County Register
Indicted ex-Capistrano
Unified Superintendent James Fleming is not likely to face a jury
until at least next summer, after a judge postponed a hearing on
Fleming's motion for dismissal until late February and prosecutors
said they were looking at a possible August trial date. Orange
County Superior Court Judge William Froeberg was scheduled to weigh
the dismissal motion Monday, but continued the hearing by 2-1/2
months, until Feb. 26, said Susan Schroeder of the Orange County
District Attorney's Office...
Judge to weigh ex-Capo chief's dismissal motion Monday
December 11, 2009
Scott Martindale, The Orange County Register
An Orange County judge on
Monday is expected to decide the fate of a motion filed by indicted
ex-Capistrano Unified Superintendent James Fleming seeking to
dismiss his case on the grounds that prosecutors' evidence is
insufficient and not properly vetted. The 78-page motion, filed in
October, says Fleming, 66, was indicted "without reasonable or
probable cause" and casts doubt on prosecutors' contention that
Fleming was the mastermind of a plot to illegally create "enemies"
lists of the Capistrano Unified School District's political
opponents...
The faith of our founding fathers: in context
November 05, 2009
Letters: Steve Fleming, The Orange County
Register If Jim
Corbett's letter, "John Adams on religion" [Nov. 2], is an example
of his teaching style for Advanced Placement History, I understand
why he is controversial. His quotes were incomplete and taken out
of context … Revisionists like Corbett deliberately reverse Adams's
position. Many other Adams quotations refer to his Christian faith
and his belief that religion is an essential part of the fabric of
American life...
Judge continues hearing in ex-Capistrano chief's case
September 25, 2009
Fermin Leal, The Orange County Register
A judge continued today a
pretrial hearing for indicted former Capistrano Unified
Superintendent James Fleming and former assistant superintendent
Susan McGill so the prosecution and defense teams can review
subpoenaed computer records. The electronic records, from
Capistrano Unified School District computers, were submitted during
this morning's pretrial hearing by the school district's executive
director of risk management Jeff Bristow. Judge William Froeberg
continued the hearing to Oct. 9. Jury selection is scheduled to
begin Oct. 13...
Trial date set for ex-Capistrano superintendent
August 21, 2009
Scott Martindale, The Orange County Register
Both prosecutors and
defense attorneys in the criminal case against indicted
ex-Capistrano Unified Superintendent James Fleming and a former
assistant superintendent say they're ready to begin jury selection
Oct. 13, the most promising sign yet the pair will face a jury
after two years of delays. Orange County Superior Court Judge
William Froeberg on Friday set a final pretrial hearing date for
Sept. 25 and jury selection for Oct. 13. The trial has been
postponed eight times since its October 2007 start date...
Trial for ex-Capistrano superintendent delayed 8th time
August 14, 2009
Scott Martindale, The Orange County Register
The court trial for
indicted ex-Capistrano Unified Superintendent James Fleming and a
former assistant superintendent will likely be delayed until at
least October, some two years after the pair were originally
scheduled to face a jury … The D.A. has 'scheduling conflict' with
key witness ... Originally scheduled to go to trial Oct. 29, 2007,
the trial was delayed until April 28, 2008, again until Aug. 12,
again until Feb. 10, 2009, again until April 28, again Aug. 17 and
now until October 2009. The first three delays were granted at
the request of prosecutors, who said they needed more time to
gather and analyze evidence...
Trial for ex-Capistrano superintendent delayed 8th time
August 14, 2009
Scott Martindale, The Orange County Register
The court trial for
indicted ex-Capistrano Unified Superintendent James Fleming and a
former assistant superintendent will likely be delayed until at
least October, some two years after the pair were originally
scheduled to face a jury. Orange County Superior Court Judge
William Froeberg on Friday granted a request by prosecutors to
delay the trial for an eighth time because of a "scheduling
conflict" with a key witness. A trial-setting conference was set
for Aug. 21...
Trial for ex-Capistrano superintendent delayed a 7th time
June 05, 2009
Scott Martindale, The Orange County Register
The court trial for
indicted ex-Capistrano Unified Superintendent James Fleming and a
former assistant superintendent will be delayed by at least two
more weeks, pushing the trial date to Aug. 31 or later. Orange
County Superior Court Judge William Froeberg said the trial cannot
start Aug. 17 because of a scheduling conflict...
Trial for ex-Capistrano district chief delayed 6th time
May 01, 2009
Scott Martindale, The Orange County Register
The court trial for
indicted ex-Capistrano Unified Superintendent James Fleming and a
former assistant superintendent was delayed for a sixth time today,
pushing the trial date to Aug. 17 even as Fleming's attorney
indicated the case could be delayed again by a pretrial motion.
John Barnett, who has represented Fleming for the past month, told
Orange County Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals he needed to
push the trial forward by another 2-1/2 months, from its June 1
start date, and also mentioned he planned to file a pretrial
motion...
Trial for ex-Capistrano district chief delayed 5th time
April 07, 2009
Scott Martindale, The Orange County Register
The court trial for
indicted ex-Capistrano Unified Superintendent James Fleming and a
former assistant superintendent was delayed for a fifth time this
morning at the request of Fleming's lawyer, virtually ensuring the
pair won't face a jury until nearly two years after their original
trial date. Over strong objections from prosecutors, Orange County
Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals granted a request by Fleming's
attorney, Ronald Brower, to remove himself from the case over a
"legal and ethical" conflict of interest and to push the trial
start date forward by two months, to June 1...
Trial for ex-Capistrano district chief delayed 4th time
February 10, 2009
Scott Martindale, The Orange County Register
The court trial for
indicted ex-Capistrano Unified Superintendent James Fleming and a
former assistant superintendent was delayed for a fourth time this
morning at the request of Fleming's lawyer, virtually ensuring that
the pair won't face a jury until almost two years after their
original trial date. Orange County Superior Court Judge Thomas
Goethals granted a request by defense attorney Ronald Brower to
cancel the trial, which was scheduled to begin today, and
reschedule it for April 7. It has been postponed four times since
its original Oct. 29, 2007, start date...
Grand Jury Transcript of Witness Barbara Thacker
May 09, 2007
2006-2007 Orange County Grand Jury Examination of CUSD
"Enemies Lists" Superior Court of the State of
California, Central Justice Center, County of Orange, In Re The
Proceeding of: Allegation of Misuse of Public Funds with Capo
Unified School District
Grand Jury Transcript of Witness James Fleming
April 26, 2007
2006-2007 Orange County Grand Jury Examination of CUSD
"Enemies Lists" Superior Court of the State of
California, Central Justice Center, County of Orange, In Re The
Proceeding of: Allegation of Misuse of Public Funds with Capo
Unified School District
Grand Jury Transcript of Witness Charles McCulley
January 19, 2007
2006-2007 Orange County Grand Jury Examination of CUSD
"Enemies Lists" Superior Court of the State of
California, Central Justice Center, County of Orange, In Re The
Proceeding of: Allegation of Misuse of Public Funds with Capo
Unified School District
Grand Jury Transcript of Witness Edward Kovac
January 19, 2007
2006-2007 Orange County Grand Jury Examination of CUSD
"Enemies Lists" Superior Court of the State of
California, Central Justice Center, County of Orange, In Re The
Proceeding of: Allegation of Misuse of Public Funds with Capo
Unified School District
Grand Jury Transcripts of Witnesses Marlene Draper and David Doomey
November 28, 2006
2006, 2006-2007 Orange County Grand Jury Examination of
CUSD "Enemies Lists" Superior Court of the State of
California, Central Justice Center, County of Orange, In Re The
Proceeding of: Allegation of Misuse of Public Funds with Capo
Unified School District
Grand Jury Transcript of Witness John Casabianca
October 18, 2006
2006-2007 Orange County Grand Jury Examination of CUSD
"Enemies Lists" Superior Court of the State of
California, Central Justice Center, County of Orange, In Re The
Proceeding of: Allegation of Misuse of Public Funds with Capo
Unified School District
Grand Jury Transcript of Witness Mark Bauer
October 17, 2006
2006-2007 Orange County Grand Jury Examination of CUSD
"Enemies Lists" Superior Court of the State of
California, Central Justice Center, County of Orange, In Re The
Proceeding of: Allegation of Misuse of Public Funds with Capo
Unified School District
Grand Jury Transcripts of Witnesses Susan McGill and Sherial Hahn
August 21, 2006
2006-2007 Orange County Grand Jury Examination of CUSD
"Enemies Lists" Superior Court of the State of
California, Central Justice Center, County of Orange, In Re The
Proceeding of: Allegation of Misuse of Public Funds with Capo
Unified School District
Grand Jury Transcript of Witness Kate MacIntyre
August 16, 2006
2006-2007 Orange County Grand Jury Examination of CUSD
"Enemies Lists" Superior Court of the State of
California, Central Justice Center, County of Orange, In Re The
Proceeding of: Allegation of Misuse of Public Funds with Capo
Unified School District