What would a lawsuit over redistricting/school assignment look like?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Agree with the person who yesterday said that the whole "inherited feeder even if OOB" system instituted by Rhee was actually a Trojan horse introduced to one day break DCPS as it is doing right now.

Because that is what it is doing.

Question is: Was Rhee that smart?

I remember that posting, it made me laugh because I am also a Howardian (as opposed to an Harvardian) . I agree with that posting too, but what she/he was claiming is that you do not need to be that smart, you just had do draw a line to extrapolate the trend to foresee that. Certainly a calculated move.

[Anonymous]

As a lawyer, no one could possibly say what causes of actions could be possible, and whether they'd survive, without knowing the specific government action.

[Anonymous]

Which hasn't yet occurred, I should add.

[Anonymous]

And if the last Ward 2 meeting is at all indicative, 21st Century Schools Fund has a gaggle of 3Ls from American working helping draft.

[Anonymous]

3Ls?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As a lawyer, no one could possibly say what causes of actions could be possible, and whether they'd survive, without knowing the specific government action.

As a lawyer I can tell you the chances of a law suit based on any sort of substantive ground succeeding are about zero. That gaggle of 3Ls is worth about as much as they are being paid.

Now if this is an administrative act then I am sure there are a zillion procedural requirements that could possibly be violated.

But nobody is going to win on the argument that they had some sort of constitutional property right to go to Brent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:3Ls?

3rd year law students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Good attorney can mount any type of case.

Any attorney can mount a case, but even Mr. Chaffanbrass couldn't win this case.

[Anonymous]

I'm confused. It has always seemed to me AA families EOTP always had a potential case, but people getting moved out of the crowded white schools to other DCPS with space? No way. You are just a bunch of idiots.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm confused. It has always seemed to me AA families EOTP always had a potential case, but people getting moved out of the crowded white schools to other DCPS with space? No way. You are just a bunch of idiots.

+10000 That about sums it up.

[Anonymous]

For example, if parts of Ward 3's kids were denied their existing right to go to Wilson high school, then DCPS would have to come up with a non-race-or-class-based reason for zoning those kids out of it. Because most would say, off the top of their heads, the real reason to move predominately white and well-off kids out of Wilson would be to move more predominately non-white-and-lower-income kids into Wilson. That's on its face an illegal discriminatory motive.

The best way for DCPS to avoid the entire controversy would be to make Wilson an all-lottery school. Which would immediately destroy the quality of Wilson as a school, but that's not the subject we're talking about here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm confused. It has always seemed to me AA families EOTP always had a potential case, but people getting moved out of the crowded white schools to other DCPS with space? No way. You are just a bunch of idiots.

There are two types of lawsuits that I can imagine:

1) If DC govt decides to end all OOB feeder rights to the WOTP schools, in order to solve the crowding problem, the practical result might be de facto segregation. Deal/Wilson, and to a lesser extent Hardy, will be very white, while the schools EOTP will be very black. I could see some (black) EOTP parents trying for a civil rights/desegregation case. Request a desegregation order, demand that students be put on buses or demand to keep the OOB feeders etc.

2) If DC decides to make WOTP MS/HS lottery with no proximity preference, or does something else to upset WOTP parents, the WOTP parents could hire lawyers steeped in DC admin and Federal review and try to find every procedural flaw that they can. This could delay the process and create time for a political campaign, but not stop the process.

I am not sure what the chances are for (1). I'm a lawyer but I don't have experience with those types of cases. Maybe someone else can comment.

Regarding (2), maybe you could succeed in making life difficult for DC for a while, but only for a while, and you are spending your own money while DC spends your tax dollars defending your suit. I think more likely than (2), if WOTP parents or high-SES parents in general feel aggrieved, maybe they could take it to Congress. DC doesn't have any votes but maybe there are some reps who are willing to make an issue out of it. Maybe you could convince Republicans that DC will become even more Democrat if bad school policy results in white flight from the city. If DC was worried that Congress might interfere (this has rarely been done), then DC might water down the proposal...

But as others have said, there is no constitutional right to neighborhood schools. Even if many of us see neighborhood schools as fundamental to the fabric of society in the US. I certainly do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For example, if parts of Ward 3's kids were denied their existing right to go to Wilson high school, then DCPS would have to come up with a non-race-or-class-based reason for zoning those kids out of it. Because most would say, off the top of their heads, the real reason to move predominately white and well-off kids out of Wilson would be to move more predominately non-white-and-lower-income kids into Wilson. That's on its face an illegal discriminatory motive.

The best way for DCPS to avoid the entire controversy would be to make Wilson an all-lottery school. Which would immediately destroy the quality of Wilson as a school, but that's not the subject we're talking about here.

But of course, that's the great threat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm confused. It has always seemed to me AA families EOTP always had a potential case, but people getting moved out of the crowded white schools to other DCPS with space? No way. You are just a bunch of idiots.

There are two types of lawsuits that I can imagine:

1) If DC govt decides to end all OOB feeder rights to the WOTP schools, in order to solve the crowding problem, the practical result might be de facto segregation. Deal/Wilson, and to a lesser extent Hardy, will be very white, while the schools EOTP will be very black. I could see some (black) EOTP parents trying for a civil rights/desegregation case. Request a desegregation order, demand that students be put on buses or demand to keep the OOB feeders etc.

2) If DC decides to make WOTP MS/HS lottery with no proximity preference, or does something else to upset WOTP parents, the WOTP parents could hire lawyers steeped in DC admin and Federal review and try to find every procedural flaw that they can. This could delay the process and create time for a political campaign, but not stop the process.

I am not sure what the chances are for (1). I'm a lawyer but I don't have experience with those types of cases. Maybe someone else can comment.

Regarding (2), maybe you could succeed in making life difficult for DC for a while, but only for a while, and you are spending your own money while DC spends your tax dollars defending your suit. I think more likely than (2), if WOTP parents or high-SES parents in general feel aggrieved, maybe they could take it to Congress. DC doesn't have any votes but maybe there are some reps who are willing to make an issue out of it. Maybe you could convince Republicans that DC will become even more Democrat if bad school policy results in white flight from the city. If DC was worried that Congress might interfere (this has rarely been done), then DC might water down the proposal...

But as others have said, there is no constitutional right to neighborhood schools. Even if many of us see neighborhood schools as fundamental to the fabric of society in the US. I certainly do.

This was very helpful, thanks PP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For example, if parts of Ward 3's kids were denied their existing right to go to Wilson high school, then DCPS would have to come up with a non-race-or-class-based reason for zoning those kids out of it. Because most would say, off the top of their heads, the real reason to move predominately white and well-off kids out of Wilson would be to move more predominately non-white-and-lower-income kids into Wilson. That's on its face an illegal discriminatory motive.

The best way for DCPS to avoid the entire controversy would be to make Wilson an all-lottery school. Which would immediately destroy the quality of Wilson as a school, but that's not the subject we're talking about here.

My understanding is that desegregation is legal. Meaning, you cannot discriminate against AAs, but it is ok to "discriminate" against whites in order to desegregate. Wasn't that the whole point of Brown v. Board? Maybe some of the recent college admission affirmative action cases have begun to change this - I don't know.