Suit filed over ban on inperson school
A conservative legal foundation filed suit Tuesday to overturn Gov. Gavin Newsom’s order barring schools in most of the state from bringing students into the classrooms this fall.
The suit, which was filed in a Los Angeles federal court by the Center for American Liberty, accuses Newsom of arbitrarily depriving children of their right to an adequate education and argues that he has no constitutional power to make that decision.
The governor and the state “have ushered in a new wave of COVID19 restrictions, this time barring inperson schooling for most children in California,” the suit charges, adding that “they have placed politics ahead of the wellbeing of children” and deprived millions of children “of the opportunity for meaningful education and the attendant hope for a brighter future.”
On Friday, Newsom released his plan for how schools can start the new academic year during the coronavirus pandemic, which in recent weeks has roared through the state, setting records in the number of cases and hospitalizations. The plan essentially barred inperson classes in any of the 33 counties now on the state’s coronavirus watch list, representing the vast majority of California schoolchildren.
“Learning is nonnegotiable,” Newsom said in his announcement calling for a move to distance learning. “Students, staff and parents all prefer inclassroom instruction, but only if it can be done safely.”
But Harmeet Dhillon, founder of the center and attorney for the Southern California families named in the suit, charged that relying on home computers and a keyboard instead of a desk in a classroom is unfair to parents and students alike, especially those in lowincome families or with special needs that can’t be handled from afar.
“All the students we’ve seen were failed by the state of California” when schools were closed in the spring, said Dhillon, former vice chair of the California Republican Party and a national GOP committeewoman. “For parents of special needs children, the state has failed to provide the specialized help needed.”
Christine Ruiz, a plaintiff in the case with two autistic children, said it’s impossible to duplicate the help available at school.
“When my son goes to school, he has a team,” she said in the Zoom news conference with Dhillon. “We are the ones left behind.”
The governor’s office has not commented on the lawsuit.
The suit calls for a permanent injunction barring the state from enforcing the school closure rules.
This isn’t the first suit Dhillon and her center have filed against the state. She has challenged Newsom on everything from church services to Orange County beach closures and fought for various other causes around the country.
“If you’re able to get a haircut or have your nails done in California, you can thank the Center for American Liberty,” she said.
Dhillon said her suit is not about the coronavirus, but about choice.
“I don’t know any educator in California who believes we should reopen (schools) with business as usual,” she said. “We’re advocating parental choice: Take the reasonable risk of sending children to school” or face the prospect of having them fall behind for at least a year.