Court Rejects Student's Claims of Selective Prosecution
by
Joseph C. Maya on Apr. 26, 2017
Other Education Criminal Government Government Agencies
Summary: Blog post about a student who claimed she was improperly expelled and selectively prosecuted.
If you have a question or concern about special education law, school administration, federal standards, or the overall rights of a student, please feel free to call the expert education law attorneys at Maya Murphy, P.C. in Westport today at (203) 221-3100 .
In the case of Roach v. North Haven Board of Education, a student sued a board of education alleging she was improperly expelled and selectively prosecuted. To prevail in a claim for selective prosecution, the student would have to provide evidence proving that other students in her similar situation are treated differently by the school. The board of education moved for summary judgment, which is a preemptive decision in favor of one party over the other.
On Thursday, March 30, 2000, an assistant principal confiscated a box knife from the student. The school’s assistant principle suspended the student for two days pending further investigation and action by the Principal. After the two day suspension, the student was suspended for an additional ten days. The student claims that another student was once in possession of a razor blade on school grounds and was given only a five-day suspension.The court granted the school’s motion for summary judgment. The evidence that the student submitted to support selective prosecution was not sufficient, because the school had offered evidence that the other student was a special education student. This evidence undermined the student's argument, because the student was not, in fact, in a similar situation to her, but in a separate education program altogether. Therefore, he claims for selective prosecution were rules insufficient by the court.
If you have a child with a disability and have questions about special education law, please contact Joseph C. Maya, Esq., at 203-221-3100, or at JMaya@mayalaw.com, to schedule a free consultation.
Source: Roach v. North Haven Board of Education, 2002 Conn. Super. LEXIS 4028 (Dec. 10, 2002)
