Background
P.H., a minor with serious medical issues, attended school in the Compton Unified School District. After P.H. began experiencing medical issues, the district did not provide an individualized education program but instead summarily disenrolled her. P.H. and her mother sought relief under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. An administrative law judge initially denied relief, but the district court reversed, and on remand, the administrative law judge found that the district had denied P.H. a free appropriate public education. The district court affirmed that order and awarded attorney’s fees. The district now appeals the merits decision and the fee award.
The court’s reasoning
The court reviewed questions of law de novo and factual findings for clear error. It held that the Office of Administrative Hearings had jurisdiction to adjudicate residency because it is intertwined with the IDEA complaint. The court affirmed that the inter-district permit was not revoked by the mother’s representations, and the district’s summary disenrollment constituted a procedural violation. The court rejected the district’s argument that it was not liable because the student was hospitalized, noting that no other district had responsibility for a student not yet identified as having a disability. Regarding fees, the court found the district court did not abuse its discretion in awarding approximately seven hundred seventy thousand dollars, as the plaintiffs succeeded in showing the denial of a free appropriate public education.
What it means going forward
School districts must ensure valid inter-district permits are properly revoked before disenrolling students and remain liable for denials of services resulting from procedural violations, even if the student is hospitalized during the period of denial.