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Suspensions and expulsions can
affect your child's records for years
In the last several years, school
districts have increasingly taken an extreme approach to
relatively minor infractions by students by enacting inflexible
“zero tolerance” policies. School administrators treat minor
incidents as major crimes if the incident takes place
on a school campus and off-campus school functions, and will
often refer discipline cases to law enforcement.
If your
child has been suspended or threatened with expulsion from
school, it is wise to seek advice from an experienced education
law attorney. School boards and school districts must comply
with certain procedural rules when making the decision to
expel a student, and without representation from a knowledgeable
education law attorney, you and your child may find yourselves
forced to accept an unacceptable outcome when other options
may be available.
Education law is complex, and school administrators
are often lax in following state procedures for suspensions
or expulsions. Parents are frequently not told about their
rights or the rights of their child. Your child's education
and school record are invaluable and should be protected
with every resource available. Our attorneys have significant
experience representing students at expulsion and due process
hearings — using the procedural rules to make sure your child's
rights under education law are protected.
With offices in
Walnut Creek, California, The Law Offices of
Johnson & Johnson, provides legal representation in school
expulsion and suspension proceedings as part of our education
law practice.
Some of the techniques employed by our lawyers
on behalf of students in trouble for transgressions such
as truancy, fighting or sexual harassment include:
- Informal
negotiation: In some cases, the student's case may be resolved
short of expulsion or suspension via informal negotiation.
The issues identified by the school may often be resolved
short of a formal expulsion, and the trouble may be kept
off the student's educational transcript.
- Enforcement
of suspension procedures: When a principal suspends a student
from school, the Education Code has specific procedures.
The parents and the student must be informed of their right
to have a meeting to review the reasons for suspension, and
to discuss alternative forms of discipline.
- Examination
of the student's need for special education: Sometimes, students
get in trouble at school due to an unidentified need for
special education, or an individualized education plan (IEP).
In such cases, our lawyers work with the school district
and special education experts to make sure such a plan is
put into place — and complied with.
- Failure to
comply: The
school's failure to comply with the IEP can be a defense
to the school taking action against your child. In the past
decade, the incidence of school administrators retaliating
against parents who assert their child’s rights has risen.
- Representation
at expulsion hearings: We make sure the school honors the student's right to a formal expulsion hearing,
using the Constitutional right to due process. At such a
hearing, mitigating factors may be brought to light that
your advocate will use to argue for more reasonable consequences.
Employers and universities generally
conduct a background check before accepting an
individual as either an employee or new student. Children
make mistakes, and we will fight to make sure these records
don’t unfairly tarnish your child’s school placement and
affect their future.
If your child has been been suspended from school,
it is STRONGLY RECOMMMENDED THAT YOU HIRE an experienced
education law attorney. Call the Law
Offices of Johnson & Johnson today for a free
consultation at (925) 952-8900.
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