The strictest law sometimes becomes the severest injustice - Benjamin Franklin
When our children in Texas public schools can be accused, found guilty, ticketed, often times arrested and removed from school before parents are notified, then there is something intrinsically wrong with a system that claims to work in partnership with parents for the education and wellbeing of our children.
HB 171, SB 2270 Pass!!!
UPDATE: In the legislative process, both bills went back to the respective houses for reconsideration. HB 171 passed both Houses with amendments on May, 28 2009. We are awaiting the governor's signature.
A salute of gratitude goes out from Texas Zero Tolerance and its thousands of supporters. House Bill 171 and Senate Bill 2270 have passed their respective houses and will now become law with Governor Rick Perry’s signature.
We wish to thank State Representative Dora Olivo and her wonderful staff – especially Stefani Williams – for their hard work and persistence in getting this bill introduced. They fought hard for it at every step of the way and the parents and children of Texas owe them a great deal of thanks.
HB 172 has passed through the House Committee on Public Education and our hopes are for it to pass on the House floor and be introduced in the Senate for consideration. With HB 171 and HB 172, we have a solid fix for the overbearing disciplinary system in Texas and the abuses made by the hundreds of school administrators should become a thing of the past.
Why Texas Zero Tolerance is Needed
As parents of children in the Texas public school system, we are constantly reminded that we are partners in the education of our children.
Many parents in Texas do not realize that if their child is accused of a disciplinary infraction at their school, they can be brought into the school principal’s office, interrogated by school officials, interrogated by police, arrested and taken to jail before parents are notified. After all the dust has settled, you as a parent have few rights for an appeal. Once a citation is written, it cannot be taken back and your child will have to appear in court.
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The Ninth District Court of Texas ruled that the Texas Education Code permits Texas school districts to decline to expel students for mandatory disciplinary infractions except for firearms if intent is adopted as a factor in expulsion decisions in the school district’s student code of conduct. From the opinion:
“The central issue in this case is whether Texas law mandates the expulsion of a student for unknowingly possessing a weapon on a school district’s property. We hold that the Texas Education Code permits school districts to decline to expel students for unknowingly possessing prohibited weapons if the districts have adopted intent as a factor in expulsion decisions.”
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Take Action! ~ Tell the Legislature we've had enough (we do not solicit contributions)
by Eddie Evans, Co-Director - Texas Zero Tolerance
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"We hold children to higher standards than we hold adults. We don't leave any room for children to make mistakes." ~ Billy Jacobs, former Senior Director of the Safe Schools Division of the Texas Education Agency
“There is no law authorizing an officer to interview a child on campus (except for investigations of child abuse or neglect). The school district can choose. It can permit interrogations, it can refuse to allow interrogations, or it can choose to allow interrogations only if the parent has first been contacted. However, if an officer is there to arrest a student or take the student into custody, the district definitely should not interfere.” ~ TEA Staff Lawyer
