California Court of Appeal

Enrollment and attendance in a public full-time day school is required by California law for minor children unless: 1) the child is enrolled in a private full-time day school and actually attends that private school; 2) the child is tutored by a person holding a valid state teaching credential for the grade being taught; or 3) one of the other few statutory exemptions to compulsory public school attendance (Ed. Code, section 48220 et seq.) applies to the child. In a dependency proceeding involving whether parents could legally "home school" their children, denial of motion requiring children to attend public or traditional private school is vacated and remanded where parents failed to show that any of the applicable exemptions applied to their children.

Appellate Information

• Decided 08/08/2008
• Published 08/08/2008

Judges

• CROSKEY, J.

Court

• California Court of Appeal

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Children's Law Center of Los Angeles, Cameryn Schmidt, Christine Caldwell, Patricia G. Bell and Diana Rodriguez;  and Lori A. Fields, for Petitioners, Jonathan L. and Mary Grace L., Aida Aslanian, Glendale, for Real Party in Interest, Mother, Mary L., United States Justice Foundation, Gary G. Kreep, Escondido;  Alliance Defense Fund, Timothy D. Chandler, Folsom, and Jeffrey A. Shafer, Cincinnati, OH;  and Christopher Blake, for Real Party in Interest, Father, Phillip L., Raymond G. Fortner, Jr., County Counsel, James M. Owens, Larry Cory, Assistant County Counsel and Judith A. Luby, Deputy County Counsel, for Real Party in Interest, Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services., Pacific Justice Institute, Kevin T. Snider, Sacramento, Brad W. Dacus, Karen D. Milam and Matthew B. McReynolds, for Sunland Christian School as Amicus Curiae., Pacific Legal Foundation, Sharon L. Browne and Damien M. Schiff, Bellevue, VA, for Pacific Legal Foundation, Kent Hayes and Anne Hayes as Amici Curiae., American Center for Law & Justice, Jay Alan Sekulow, Stuart J. Roth, Colby M. May, James M. Henderson, and Walter M. Weber, Washington, DC, for American Center for Law & Justice as Amicus Curiae., Western Center for Law & Policy, Dean R. Broyles and James M. Griffiths, for Western Center for Law & Policy as Amicus Curiae., American Civil Rights Union, Richard D. Thorn, for American Civil Rights Union as Amicus Curiae., Jason R. Craddock, Sauk Village, IL, for Christian Leaders as Amicus Curiae., Dickenson, Peatman & Fogarty, Matt Eisenberg, Napa, for Jewish Homeschoolers of Napa and Sonoma Counties as Amicus Curiae., Baker & McKenzie, Tod L. Gamlen, Gerald M. Salcido, George Kimball, Stefan R. Spich and Erik C. Mazza, San Diego, for California Homeschool Network as Amicus Curiae., Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, Douglas J. Clark, Diane M. Walters, Benjamin M. Crosson and Crystal M. Gaudette, Palo Alto, for Homeschool Association of California as Amicus Curiae., Munger, Tolles & Olson, Kristin L. Myles, James C. Rutten and Victoria L. Boesch, San Francisco, for Christian Home Educators Association of California as Amicus Curiae., Bingham McCutchen, John Reese, Thomas S. Hixson and Tanya K. Dumas, San Francisco, for Gifted Homeschoolers Forum as Amicus Curiae., Morrison & Foerster, Sean P. Gates, for Grace Christian Academy as Amicus Curiae., GCA Law Partners, Deborah R. Schwarzer, Mountain View, for Arbor Academy, Beach High School, Excellence In Education, AtoZ Home's Cool, Homefires-Journal of Homeschooling Online, and Northern California African American Homeschooler's Association as Amici Curiae., Home School Legal Defense Association, J. Michael Smith, Darren A. Jones and Michael P. Farris, Purcellville, VA, for Home School Legal Defense Association, Focus on the Family and Private and Home Educators of California as Amici Curiae., Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence, John C. Eastman, Sacramento, and David L. Llewellyn, Jr., Citrus Heights;  and Erwin Chemerinsky, Durham, NC, for Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence as Amicus Curiae., Freedom Law Group, Nicholas P. Miller and Alan J. Reinach, for Seventh-Day Adventist Church State Council as Amicus Curiae., Goodwin Procter, Brooks R. Brown, Michelle Gonnam, Boston, MA, and John Affeldt, for Public Advocates, Inc. as Amicus Curiae., National Legal Foundation, Brian R. Chavez-Ochoa, Valley Springs, for National Legal Foundation as Amicus Curiae., Daniel E. Witte, Salt Lake City, UT, for Sutherland Institute as Amicus Curiae., Priscilla S. Winslow, Burlingame, for California Teachers Association as Amicus Curiae., Liberty Counsel, Mary E. McAlister, Mathew D. Staver, Anita L. Staver, Orlando, FL, and Sarah E. Seitz, for Members of U.S. Congress as Amici Curiae., Edmund G. Brown Jr., Attorney General, Douglas M. Press, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Karin S. Schwartz and Gregory D. Brown, Deputy Attorneys General, for the Governor of the State of California and the Attorney General of the State of California as Amici Curiae., Marsha A. Bedwell, Sacramento, Amy B. Holloway and Michael E. Hersher, Sacramento, for Superintendent of Public Instruction and the California Department of Education as Amici Curiae., Jess Womack, Rochelle J. Montgomery and Kelly R. Barnes;  Fagen Friedman & Fulfrost, Howard Friedman, Los Angeles, and Emilia C. Huntley, for Los Angeles Unified School District as Amicus Curiae.


• For Appellees:
  
• No appearance for Respondent.