Rodiriecus L. v. Waukegan Sch. Dist. No. 60

No. 95 C 1275 (N.D. Ill. May 25, 1995) ; Clearinghouse Number: 50718

Description

School District Enjoined from Expelling Student with Behavioral Problems Pending His Evaluation for Special Education Services

Abstract

The district court has granted plaintiff student’s motion for a preliminary injunction in this action challenging defendant school district’s decision to expel him. Plaintiff is a 13-year-old student in the seventh grade. Following a juvenile court disposition in August 1993, plaintiff was placed under the guardianship of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). That fall, plaintiff began receiving educational and behavioral services through a nonschool program. Plaintiff’s evaluation for special education services was conducted but never completed. In January 1995, plaintiff was suspended from school for alleged multiple thefts. The next month, DCFS requested that plaintiff be evaluated for special education services. After a hearing, the school district expelled student for the remainder of the school year. Subsequently, notwithstanding its decision to expel student, the school district performed a special education case study evaluation and concluded that student was not eligible for special education and related services. Plaintiff filed suit alleging that the school district’s actions violated his rights under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), 20 U.S.C. §§ 1401 et seq., Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. § 794, the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, and state law. The court held that the stay-put provision of the IDEA, 20 U.S.C. § 1415(e)(3), applies to student and that defendant school district may not change student’s placement by continuing to exclude him from school pending the results of an independent evaluation of his need for special education. The court rejected the school district’s argument that student’s current placement was under suspension. Noting that one of the purposes of the IDEA was to prevent schools from excluding students with disabilities without providing them with the educational services they need, the court found that one of the most compelling reasons for the stay-put provision might be to enable a potentially disabled student to take advantage of IDEA to prevent expulsion.

Additional Information

Attorney Information
Plaintiff represented by Mark Reyes, David Wolowitz, Prairie State Legal Services, 415 W. Washington St., Suite 002, Waukegan, IL 60085, (708) 662-6925.
Docket Date
1995-05-25 00:00:00+00:00