| In a previous report on a Muskogee School arresting a student while attending school, we noted that the official spokesman for the school district, Steve Braun, claimed that the district is following "a statute which has been on the books for decades". We found a clause in §70-10-109 which was written into the state code in 1989. It allows for the temporary placement of a child into a juvenile detention facility, but not for being in school, but rather for habitually being found out in the community unsupervised during a time when they are obviously supposed to be in classroom studies. §70-10-109. Temporary detention and custody of children subject to compulsory attendance law. A. An attendance officer, any school administrator, or designee of the school administrator who is employed by the school, or any peace officer may, except for children being home schooled pursuant to Section 10-105 of the Oklahoma Statutes, temporarily detain and assume temporary custody of any child subject to compulsory full-time education, during hours in which school is actually in session, who is found away from the home of such child and who is absent from school without lawful excuse within the school district that such attendance officer, peace officer or school official serves, if said school district has previously approved the temporary detention and custody pursuant to this section. | Note: We don't have a staff of lawyers at SoonerPolitics, but our own journalistic research did come up with a few statutory findings. And the Muskogee School Board may not be happy with what we've found.  The Muskogee School Board has a serious issue to address. Lawsuits may be filed even if they take corrective actions. |
The clear intent in the statutes is for a peace officer to detain a student so the child who is found out in the community & unsupervised, can be taken back to school or to a parent. The Muskogee school leadership instead used the law to take a kid out of school and exact a cruel punishment of a child for what a parent did not yet do(sign a paper).
This action is an attempt to force a parent to complete school assignments(signing papers), above & beyond the academic assignments that the child is required to for educational development.
This parent retained her duty to care for the health needs of her child, even with her limited resources. She delegated the educational development to the Muskogee Public Schools. They are to be accountable to her for his well-being while he attends classes. The district did the family a great harm and further retarded his academic development by forcing him to be away from his studies even further.
Parents need not fear the intimidation of the state DHS, law enforcement, or Orwellian school administrations when it comes to retaining custody of their children even when truancy charges are leveled against them. The statutes clearly prohibit any agency from taking any action to revoke the custody of a child for merely truancy matters.
This action is an attempt to force a parent to complete school assignments(signing papers), above & beyond the academic assignments that the child is required to for educational development.
This parent retained her duty to care for the health needs of her child, even with her limited resources. She delegated the educational development to the Muskogee Public Schools. They are to be accountable to her for his well-being while he attends classes. The district did the family a great harm and further retarded his academic development by forcing him to be away from his studies even further.
Parents need not fear the intimidation of the state DHS, law enforcement, or Orwellian school administrations when it comes to retaining custody of their children even when truancy charges are leveled against them. The statutes clearly prohibit any agency from taking any action to revoke the custody of a child for merely truancy matters.
§10O.S. 2011, Section 2-2-503 A-2-d says;
No child who has been adjudicated in need of supervision only upon the basis of truancy or noncompliance with the mandatory school attendance law shall be placed in a public or private institutional facility or be removed from the custody of the lawful parent, guardian or custodian of the child.
No child who has been adjudicated in need of supervision only upon the basis of truancy or noncompliance with the mandatory school attendance law shall be placed in a public or private institutional facility or be removed from the custody of the lawful parent, guardian or custodian of the child.
Muskogee Public Schools refused to give the child back to the mother until she satisfied their additional paperwork requirements.
She is under no legal requirement to sign such papers. the papers are only serving the need of bureaucrats, to ascertain whether the mother is aware of the absences. They could simply pick up a phone and call her.
She is under no legal requirement to sign such papers. the papers are only serving the need of bureaucrats, to ascertain whether the mother is aware of the absences. They could simply pick up a phone and call her.
