Connecticut
Judicial Branch Law Libraries
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rights reserved.
Rights of Minors in Connecticut
· MINOR, INFANT and INFANCY: “Except as otherwise provided by statute, on and after October 1, 1972, the terms "minor", "infant" and "infancy" shall be deemed to refer to a person under the age of eighteen years and any person eighteen years of age or over shall be an adult for all purposes whatsoever and have the same legal capacity, rights, powers, privileges, duties, liabilities and responsibilities as persons heretofore had at twenty-one years of age, and "age of majority" shall be deemed to be eighteen years..” Conn. Gen. Stats. § 1-1d (2007)
· CHILD: “means any person (A) under sixteen years of age, or (B) sixteen years of age or older who, prior to attaining sixteen years of age, has violated any federal or state law or municipal or local ordinance, other than an ordinance regulating behavior of a child in a family with service needs, and, subsequent to attaining sixteen years of age, violates any order of the Superior Court or any condition of probation ordered by the Superior Court with respect to such delinquency proceeding;” Conn. Gen. Stats. § 46b-120(1) (2007).
· YOUTH: “means any person sixteen or seventeen years of age;” Conn. Gen. Stats. § 46b-120(2) (2007).
· YOUTH IN CRISIS: “means any youth who, within the last two years, (A) has without just cause run away from the parental home or other properly authorized and lawful place of abode, (B) is beyond the control of parents, guardian or other custodian, or (C) has four unexcused absences from school in any one month or ten unexcused absences in any school year;” Conn. Gen. Stat. § 46b-120(3) (2007)
· FAMILY WITH SERVICE NEEDS: “means a family that includes a child who (A) has without just cause run away from the parental home or other properly authorized and lawful place of abode, (B) is beyond the control of parent, parents, guardian or other custodian, (C) has engaged in indecent or immoral conduct, (D) is a truant or habitual truant or who, while in school, has been continuously and overtly defiant of school rules and regulations, or (E) is thirteen years of age or older and has engaged in sexual intercourse with another person and such other person is thirteen years of age or older and not more than two years older or younger than such child;” Conn. Gen. Stats. § 46b-120(8) (2007).
· DELINQUENT ACT: “the violation of any federal or state law or municipal or local ordinance, other than an ordinance regulating the behavior of a child in a family with service needs, or the violation of any order of the Superior Court;” Conn. Gen. Stats. § 46b-120(11) (2007).
· STATUS OFFENDER: “is someone charged with an offense that would not be a crime if committed by an adult. Common examples are running away from home, being truant from school, and being beyond parental control.” Lawrence K. Furbish, Background on Status Offenders, Connecticut General Assembly Office of Legislative Research Report No. 2003-R-0130 (Jan. 31, 2003).
§ 10. Employment rights of minors in Connecticut
See Also:
Treated Elsewhere:
· Children’s Law Center, 893 Main Street, Willimantic, CT 06266
· Telephone: 860-423-0855
· Children’s Lawline: 1-888-LAWDOOR
· Connecticut Office of the Child Advocate http://www.oca.state.ct.us/
· Governor’s Prevention Initiative for Youth http://www.dmhas.state.ct.us/sig/
· Child Welfare League of America: http://www.cwla.org
· Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention: http://ojjdp.ncjrs.org
· National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges: http://www.ncjfcj.unr.edu/
· American Bar Association, Juvenile Justice Center: http://www.abanet.org/crimjust/juvjus
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SCOPE: |
Bibliographic resources relating to the criteria for statutory and common law emancipation, and the impact of emancipation on the status of minors and the obligations of parents.
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DEFINITIONS: |
· EMANCIPATION: "Where the parent has absolutely renounced, by agreement or implication, all care and control of the child, he is emancipated.” Town v. Anonymous, 39 Conn. Sup. 35, 38, 467 A.2d 687 (1983). · ORDER OF EMANCIPATION: “A minor over the age of sixteen who, like the minor child here, voluntarily lives apart from her parents who exercise and attempt to exercise no control over her activities is emancipated by operation of common law... Further, that minor is a party who may petition, as may her parents, for an order of emancipation pursuant to General Statute § 46b-150b...” Town v. Anonymous, 39 Conn. Sup. 35, 38, 467 A.2d 687 (1983). · COMMON LAW EMANCIPATION: “By voluntarily removing herself from her parents' home and securing her own support — originally by sharing her boyfriend's workfare support from the town, and subsequently by becoming a recipient of town welfare in her own name and that of her baby — the minor has effectively removed herself from parental controls. This circumstance, combined with her parents' acquiescence therein, results in her becoming, under common law principles, an emancipated minor.” Id. 38-39. · DESERTION BY PARENTS: “Ordinarily a child is emancipated at majority. 48 C. J. p. 485, § 119, and note 34. But the desertion of a minor by his parent may also emancipate him.” Plainville v. Milford , 119 Conn. 380, 384, 177 A. 138 (1935).
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STATUES: |
Conn. Gen. Stat. (2007) · § 46b-150. Emancipation of minor. Procedure. · § 46b-150a. Investigation of petition for emancipation. Report. Appointment of counsel. · § 46b-150b. Order of emancipation · § 46b-150c. Appeal · § 46b-150d. Effect of emancipation · § 46b-150e. Emancipation under common law.
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LEGISLATIVE:
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· Susan Price-Livingston, Emancipation Procedures, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research, Report No. 2002-R-0008 (Jan. 3, 2002). · George Coppolo, Emancipation of Minors, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research, Report No. 97-R-0163 (1997). · Saul Spigel, Parental Authority Over 16- and 17- Year Olds, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research Report No. 98-R-1521 (1998). · George Coppolo, Parents’ rights and responsibilities for their 16- and 17-year old children, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research, Report No. 2003-R-0564 (2003).
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COURT CASES:
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· Delevett v. Delevett, 156 Conn. 1, 3-4,238 A.2d 402 (1968). “When, as part of a divorce decree, a parent is ordered to pay a specified amount periodically for the benefit of more than one child, the emancipation of one child does not automatically affect the liability of the parent for the full amount . . . .The proper remedy, if the full amount is deemed excessive, is to seek a modification of the decree.” · In Re Thomas C., 44 Conn. Sup. 437, 691 A.2d 1140 (1996). “Although the petitioners’ stated reasons for seeking emancipation are understandable, the court finds that they do not meet the burden of good cause showing that it would be in the best interest of the child, or the parent, to emancipate Thomas.” (p. 444) · Wood v. Wood, 135 Conn. 280, 63 A.2d 586 (1948). “‘An ‘implied emancipation’ results when the parent, without any express agreement, by his acts or conduct impliedly consents that his minor son may leave home and shift for himself, have his own time, and the control of his earnings, and it may be inferred from and shown by the circumstances.’ Rounds Bros. v. McDaniel, 133 Ky. 669, 676, 118 S.W. 956.” (p. 284) · In Re Antina, Superior Court, Juvenile Matters, judicial district of Middlesex at Middletown (November 26, 1996). Juvenile’s petition for statutory emancipation granted · In Re Addison A., Superior Court, Juvenile Matters, judicial district of Hartaford/New Britain at Plainville, Docket No. 91-234 (April 16, 1992). Parents’ petition for court ordered emancipation of their seventeen year old son denied · Mills v. Theriault, 40 Conn. Sup. 349, 499 A.2d 89 (1985). Common law emancipation and child support obligation · Nelson v. Nelson, 22 Conn. Sup. 145, 164 A.2d 234 (1960). Custody and support order not entered when child was emancipated at time of dissolution · |
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ENCYCLOPEDIAS: |
· 59 Am. Jur. 2d Parent & Child §§ 80-87 (1987). · 43 C.J.S. Infants §§ 115-119 (1978). · 67A C.J.S. Parent & Child §§ 5-9 (1978). · Alice M. Wright, Annotation, What Voluntary Acts of Child, Other Than Marriage or Entry into Military Service, Terminate Parent’s Obligation to Support, 55 A.L.R. 5th 557 (1998). · Annotation, Joel E. Smith, Parent’s Obligation to Support Unmarried Minor Child Who Refuses to Live with Parent, 98 A.L.R. 3d 334 (1980).
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PAMPHLETS: |
· Legal Assistance Resource Center of Connecticut, A Teenager’s Guide to Emancipation (October 1999). URL: http://www.larcc.org/pamphlets/children_family/teen_emancipation.htm
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TEXTS & TREATISES: |
· 1 Donald T. Kramer, Legal rights of Children, Ch. 15 (2d ed. 1994) · Michael J. dale et al., Representing the Child Client, §3.05 (2000).
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LAW REVIEWS: |
· Francis C. Cady, Emancipation of Minors, 12 Conn. L. Rev. 62 (Fall 1979). · Julie S. Lavin, Emancipation of Minors: A Doctrinal and Practical Analysis for Child Advocates, 10 Conn. Fam. L. J., no. 3, 1992, at 1. · Dana F. Castle, Early Emancipation Statutes: Should they Protect Parents as Well as Children?, 20 Fam. L. Q. 343 (Fall 1986). · Katz, Schroeder & Sidman, Emancipating Our Children: Coming of Legal Age in America, 7 Fam. L. Q. 211 (1973).
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COMPILER: |
Lawrence Cheeseman, Supervising Law Librarian, Connecticut Judicial Department, Law Library at Middletown, One Court Street, Middletown, CT 06457. (860) 343‑6560. EMAIL
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Table 1 Child support and emancipation
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Emancipation and Child Support
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ARREARAGE |
“This court, therefore, ‘has jurisdiction in a contempt proceeding to enter an order to pay child support on unpaid installments which accrued before the child reached majority, where the proceedings were commenced after the child reached majority. The jurisdiction of the court is a continuing one, and the mere emancipation of the child should not serve to cancel the arrearage.’” Arnold v. Arnold, 35 Conn. Sup. 244, 245-46, 407 A.2d 190 (1979).” Veras v. Veras, 45 Conn. Sup. 169, 170, 702 A.2d 1217 (1997).
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By Modification |
“When, as part of a divorce decree, a parent is ordered to pay a specified amount periodically for the benefit of more than one child, the emancipation of one child does not automatically affect the liability of the parent for the full amount . . . . The proper remedy, if the full amount is deemed excessive, is to seek a modification of the decree.” Delevett v. Delevett, 156 Conn. 1, 3-4,238 A.2d 402 (1968).
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SCOPE: |
Bibliographic resources relating to Connecticut’s Family With Service Needs law.
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SEE ALSO: |
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DEFINITION: |
· FAMILY WITH SERVICE NEEDS (FWSN): “means a family that includes a child who (A) has without just cause run away from the parental home or other properly authorized and lawful place of abode, (B) is beyond the control of the child's parent, parents, guardian or other custodian, (C) has engaged in indecent or immoral conduct, (D) is a truant or habitual truant or who, while in school, has been continuously and overtly defiant of school rules and regulations, or (E) is thirteen years of age or older and has engaged in sexual intercourse with another person and such other person is thirteen years of age or older and not more than two years older or younger than such child” Conn. Gen. Stats. § 46b-120(8)(2007). · |
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STATUTES: |
Conn. Gen. Stat. (2007) · Chapter 168. School attendance and employment of children § 10-198a Policies and procedures concerning truants (c) If the parent or other person having control of a child who is truant fails to attend the meeting ... or if such parent or other person otherwise fails to cooperate with the school in attempting to solve the truancy problem, such policies and procedures shall require the superintendent of schools to file for each such truant ... a written complaint ... pursuant to section 46b-149 alleging the belief that the acts or omissions of the child are such that his family is a family with service needs.” · Chapter 319. Department of Children and Families § 17a-1 Definitions · Chapter 815t. Juvenile matters § 46b-120 Definitions of ‘child,’ ‘youth,’ ‘youth in crisis,’ ‘family with service needs,’ etc. § 46b-140 Disposition upon conviction of child as delinquent. § 46b-146 Erasure of police and court records. § 46b-148 Violation of valid court order by child of family with service needs § 46b-149 Family with service needs. Complaint. Review by probation officer. Filing petition. Hearing. Order § 46b-149a Duties of police officer re child of family with service needs § 46b-149b Immunity of police officer or municipal official from parental liability § 46b-149c Truancy and other family with service needs cases. Duties of judicial branch § 46b-149d Demonstration project to establish school and community based truancy prevention initiative… Establishment of truancy or family with service needs docket. Duties of Court Support Services Division
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COURT RULES |
Connecticut Practice Book (2007 Edition) · Chap. 27.Reception and Processing of Nonjudicial Delinquency, Family with Service Needs, or Youth in Crisis Complaint, or Petitions · Chap. 29. Reception and Processing of Delinquency, Child from Family with Service Needs and Youth in Crisis Petitions and Delinquency Informations. · Chap. 30A. Delinquency, Family with Service Needs and Youth in Crisis Hearings. · Chap. 31A. Delinquency, Family with Service Needs and Youth in Crisis Motions and Applications.
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LEGISLATIVE:
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· Ryan F. O’Neil, Family With Service Needs, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research Report No. 2007-R-0256 (March 2, 2007). “You asked about the history of the family with Service Needs (FWSN) program.” · Saul Spigel, Parental Control and Teenagers’ Rights, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research Report No. 2002-R-0860 (Oct. 25, 2002). · Lawrence K. Furbish, Family With Service Needs (FWSN) Law Background, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research Report No. 97-R-0441 (March 20, 1997). · Summary of 1998 Public Acts, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research 204, PA 98-183 An Act Concerning Truancy and other Family with Service Needs Cases.
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CLE SEMINARS |
· Connecticut Bar Association, Advanced and Complex Issues in Juvenile Law (Dec. 13, 1996).
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COMPILER: |
Lawrence Cheeseman, Supervising Law Librarian, Connecticut Judicial Department, Law Library at Middletown, One Court Street, Middletown, CT 06457. (860) 343‑6560. EMAIL |
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SCOPE: |
Bibliographic resources relating to: · the legal rights of minors who leave home without parental consent and · the responsibilities of legal guardians and public authorities.
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STATUTES: |
Conn. Gen. Stat. (2007) · Chapter 104. Municipal police and fire protection § 7-282c. Filing and dissemination of missing child reports · Chapter 164. Educational opportunities § 10-19m through 10-19p. Youth service bureaus . . . . · Chapter 319b. Department of Mental Retardation § 17a-185. Police transportation of certain minors to facility for care · Chapter 528. Department of Public Safety § 29-1e. Missing Children Information Clearinghouse. Definitions. Duties. Missing Child Reports. · Chapter 802h. Protected persons and their property § 45a-604 (5) ‘Guardianship’ means guardianship of the person of a minor, and includes: (A) The obligation of care and control; and (B) the authority to make major decisions affecting the minor’s welfare... § 45a-606 Father and mother joint guardians · Chapter 815t. Juvenile matters § 46b-149a. Duties of police officer re child of family with service needs. § 46b-150f. Youth in crisis. Petitions. Court Orders. Violations § 46b-150g. Duties of police officer re youth in crisis. § 46b-151 to 46b-151g. Interstate Compact on Juveniles (see especially Article IV) · Chapter 925. Statutory rights of action and defenses § 52-572 Parental liability for torts of minors United States Code (2007) · Chapter 72. Juvenile justice 42 U.S.C. §§ 5701-5751 · Chapter 119. Homeless assistance 42 U.S.C.A. §§ 11431-11435. Education for Homeless Children and Youth
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LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
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“… this legislation goes to the heart of family rights. The rights of parents and guardians to raise their children with appropriate support of the legal system. Sixteen and seventeen-year-olds will no longer be in the gray twilight zone. Not accountable to anyone.” (p. 6042)
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LEGISLATIVE REPORTS:
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· Saul Spigel, Youth in Crisis Law, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research Report No. 2002-R-0786 (Sept. 23, 2002). “You asked for (1) a history and summary of the youth in crisis (YIC) law, (2) a comparison between it and the family with service needs (FWSN) law, and (3) current budgets for both.” · Lawrence K. Furbish, Background on Status Offenders, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research Report No. 2003-R-0130 (Jan. 31, 2003). “You asked for background information on ‘status offenders’ including (1) the definition of the term, (2) if they can be incarcerated, the process of finding them guilty, and (3) any laws or regulations concerning their confinement.” · Saul Spigel, Parental Control and Teenagers’ Rights, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research Report No. 2002-R-0860 (Oct. 25, 2002). “You asked about parents' control over teenagers and what ability teens have to make decisions without their parents' consent. · George Coppolo, Parents’ rights and responsibilities for their 16- and 17-year old children, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research, Report No. 2003-R-0564 (2003). “You asked for information about parental rights and responsibilities regarding their 16 and 17 year old children. You also asked whether 16 and 17 year olds are eligible for public defender services and whether their parents’ income and assets are considered in determining their eligibility.”
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REGULATIONS
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· Conn. Agencies Regs. §§ 10-19m-1 to 10-19m-10 (5-99). § 10-19m-1(f). “Youth Service Bureau’ means an agency operated directly by one or more municipalities or a private agency designated to act as an agent of one or more municipalities for the purpose of evaluation, planning, coordination and implementation of prevention, intervention and treatment services for delinquent, pre-delinquent, pregnant, parenting and troubled youth, and for the provision of opportunities for youth to develop positively and to function as responsible members of their community.” · 45 Code of Federal Regulations (October 1, 2006) Part 1351.Runaway and Homeless Youth Program. |
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COURT CASES:
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· In Re Thomas C. 44 Conn. Sup. 437, 442, 691 A.2d 1140 (1996). “The present case is another example of the inability of parents, schools, courts and social service agencies to deal effectively with the so-called ‘grey area’ cases. Such cases involve sixteen and seventeen year old minors, who cannot be legally compelled to attend school or to obey the household rules, but whose parents are legally obligated to support and to shelter them.”
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TEXTS & TREATISE:
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· 2 Donald T. Kramer, Legal Rights of Children (revised 2d ed. 2005). Chapter 20. Children in trouble: Status offenses § 20.1. The juvenile status offender § 20.4. Status offense jurisdiction § 20.6. Due process rights of juvenile status offenders § 20.7. Right to counsel § 20.17. The Runaway and Homeless Youth Act; Missing Children Act § 20.18. State laws · 1 Michael J. Dale, Representing the Child Client (2007). § 5.02. Status offenders [1] Introduction [2] Status offender Systems [3] Runaways · Emily Paradise & Robert Horowitz, Runaway and Homeless Youth: A Survey of State Law, A.B.A. Center on Children and the Law (1994).
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ENCYCLOPEDIAS: |
· Joel E. Smith, Annotation, Parent’s Obligation to Support Unmarried Minor Child Who Refuses to Live with Parent, 98 ALR3d 334 (1980).
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LEGAL PERIODICALS: |
· John L. Bonee, Runaway Children, 48 Conn. Bar J. 360 (1974). “A person between the ages of sixteen and eighteen ... is neither defined as a child nor an adult, but a ‘youth’. There is no statute in force in Connecticut which makes it a status offense for youth to run away.” p. 375 · Carrie Che-Man Fung, M.S.W., Foster Care Runaways: From Legislation to Progress Towards Self-Sufficiency, 20 Children’s Legal Rts. J., Summer 2000, at 33. · Karen A. Joe, The Dynamics of Running Away, Deinstitutionalization Policies and the Police, 46 Juv. & Fam. Ct. L. J., Summer 1995, at 43.
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HOTLINES: |
· National Runaway Switchboard: 1-800-621-4000 3080 North Lincoln Avenue, Chicago, IL 60657 email: info@nrscrisisline.org Counseling and referral services 24-hrs
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COMPILER: |
Lawrence Cheeseman, Supervising Law Librarian, Connecticut Judicial Department, Law Library at Middletown, One Court Street, Middletown, CT 06457. (860) 343‑6560. EMAIL
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SCOPE: |
Bibliographic resources relating to: · the legal responsibilities of parents, guardians, school districts and public officials concerning truants and · judicial response to habitual truants
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DEFINITIONS: |
· “For the purposes of this section, ‘truant’ means a child age five to eighteen inclusive, who is enrolled in a public or private school and has four unexcused absences from school in any one month or ten unexcused absences from school in any school year” Conn. Gen. Stat. §10-198a(a) (2007). · “For the purposes of this section, ‘habitual truant’ means a child age five to eighteen, inclusive, enrolled in a public or private school and has twenty unexcused absences within a school year” Conn. Gen. Stat. §10-200 (2007).
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STATUTES: |
Conn. Gen. Stat. (2007) Chapter 168. School attendance and employment of children · § 10-184. Duties of parents. School attendance age requirements · § 10-185. Penalty · § 10-198a. Policies and procedures concerning truants. · § 10-199. Attendance officers. Duties. · § 10-200. Habitual truants. · § 10-201. Fees for arresting truants · § 10-202. Warrant and hearing. · § 46b-149c. Truancy and other family with service needs cases. Duties of judicial branch. · § 46b-149d. Demonstration project to establish school and community-based truancy prevention initiative. Sites. Grant eligibility. Establishment of truancy or family with service needs docket. Duties of Office of Alternative Sanctions.
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REGULATIONS: |
Conn. Agencies Regs. § 10-76d-7. Referral (7-05). “Each board of education shall accept and process referrals from appropriate school personnel, as well as from a child's parents; or from a physician, clinic or social worker, provided the parent so permits, in order to determine a child's eligibility for special education and related services. A board of education shall make available a standard referral form which shall be used in all referrals. Before a child is referred to a planning and placement team, alternative procedures and programs in regular ... (Effective September 1, 1980).”
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LEGISLATIVE: |
· Lawrence K. Furbish, Background on Status Offenders, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research Report No. 2003-R-0130 (Jan. 31, 2003). “You asked for background information on ‘status offenders’ including (1) the definition of the term, (2) if they can be incarcerated, the process of finding them guilty, and (3) any laws or regulations concerning their confinement.” · Judith Loham, Truancy Laws, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research Report No. 2000-R-0957 (October 13, 2000). “You asked how the law defines truancy and who is responsible for enforcing school attendance laws when parents fail to send young children to school.” · Saul Spigel, Truancy and Curfew Laws, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research Report No. 96-R-1273 (October 2, 1996). “You asked for summaries of the state's truancy and curfew laws.”
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COURT CASES:
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· Campbell v. Board of Education, 193 Conn. 93,94, 475 A.2d 289 (1984). “This case concerns the validity of the policy of a local school board that imposes academic sanctions for nonattendance upon high school students... The plaintiff claimed that the defendants’ policy was ultra vires in light of operative provisions of the Connecticut constitution and the United States constitution.”
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CLE SEMINARS |
· Advanced and Complex Issues in Juvenile Law, Conn. Bar Assoc. Seminar, Dec. 13, 1996.
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ENCYCLOPEDIAS: |
· Janet Boeth Jones, Annotation, Truancy as Indicative of Delinquency or Incorrigibility, Justifying Commitment of Infant or Juvenile, 5 ALR4th 1211 (1981). · Janet Boeth Jones, Annotation, Conditions at School as Excusing or Justifying Nonattendance, 9 ALR4th 122 (1981).
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TEXTS & TREATISE:
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· Thomas B. Mooney, A Practical Guide to Connecticut School Law (4th ed., 2004). Chapter 4. Residency and school attendance Mandatory school attendance (pp. 260-262) Student truancy (pp. 269-270) · 3 James A. Rapp, Education Law (2007) Chapter 8. The student-educational institution § 8.03. Compulsory education and attendance [1] Generally [2] Foundations [3] Validity of compulsory attendance requirements [4] Objections to the application of compulsory attendance requirements [5] Nature and scope of compulsory attendance requirements [8] Enforcement of compulsory attendance requirements · 2 Donald T. Kramer, Legal Rights of Children (Revised 2d ed. 2005). Chapter 20. The juvenile offender: Status offenses
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LAW REVIEWS: |
· Karl F. Dean, Criminalization of Truancy, 34 New England L. Rev. 589 (2000). · Joan L. Byer & Jeffrey Kuhn, A Model Response to Truancy Prevention: The Louisville Truancy Court Diversion Project, Juv. & Fam. Ct. J., Winter 2003, at 59.
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COMPILER: |
Lawrence Cheeseman, Supervising Law Librarian, Connecticut Judicial Department, Law Library at Middletown, One Court Street, Middletown, CT 06457. (860) 343‑6560. EMAIL
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SCOPE: |
Bibliographic resources relating to student discipline and the due process rights of students.
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DEFINITIONS: |
· EXCLUSION: “means any denial of public school privileges to a pupil for disciplinary purposes.” Conn. Gen. Stats. § 10-233a(a) (2007). · REMOVAL: “means an exclusion from a classroom for all or part of a single class period, provided such exclusion shall not extend beyond ninety minutes.” Conn. Gen. Stats. § 10-233a(b) (2007). · IN-SCHOOL SUSPENSION: “means an exclusion from regular classroom activity for no more than five consecutive school days, but not exclusion from school, provided such exclusion shall not extend beyond the end of the school year in which such in-school suspension was imposed.” Conn. Gen. Stats. § 10-233a(d) (2007). · SUSPENSION: “means an exclusion from school privileges or from transportation services only for no more than ten consecutive school days, provided such exclusion shall not extend beyond the end of the school year in which such suspension was imposed.” Conn. Gen. Stats. § 10-233a(d) (2007). · EXPULSION: “means an exclusion from school privileges for more than ten consecutive school days and shall be deemed to include, but not be limited to, exclusion from the school to which such pupil was assigned at the time such disciplinary action was taken, provided such exclusion shall not extend beyond a period of one calendar year.” Conn. Gen. Stats. § 10-233a(e) (2007). · f) EMERGENCY: “means a situation under which the continued presence of the pupil in school poses such a danger to persons or property or such a disruption of the educational process that a hearing may be delayed until a time as soon after the exclusion of such pupil as possible.” Conn. Gen. Stats. § 10-233a(f)(2007).
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STATUTES: |
Conn. Gen. Stat. (2007) Chapter 170. Boards of education · § 10-222d. Policy on bullying behavior · § 10-233a. Definitions · § 10-233b. Removal of pupils from class. · § 10-233c. Suspension of pupils · § 10-233d. Expulsion of pupils · § 10-233e. Notice as to disciplinary policies and action. · § 10-233f. In-school suspension of pupils. Reassignment. · § 10-233g. Reports of principals to police authority concerning physical assaults upon school employees by students. · § 10-233h. Arrested students. Reports by police, disclosure, confidentiality. Police testimony at expulsion hearings. · § 10-233i. Students placed on probation by a court. · § 10-233j. Student possession and use of telecommunication devices. · § 10-235. Indemnification of teachers, board members, employees and certain volunteers and students in damage suits; expenses of litigation. · § 53a-217b. Possession of a weapon on school grounds: Class D felony.
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LEGISLATIVE: |
· Judith Lohman, School Expulsion Procedure, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research, Report No. 2002-R-0849 (Oct. 15, 2002). “You asked what procedure a school district must follow to expel a high school student for carrying a weapon on school grounds.” · Judith Lohman & Kristina Arsenault, School Discipline Policies and Procedures, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research, Report No. 2002-R-0123 (Feb. 7, 2002). “You asked (1) what policies the State Board of Education (SBE) has adopted regarding student behavior and school discipline; (2) how the state is addressing discipline problems in the Hartford school system; (3) what state and federal grants are available to improve school discipline; and (4) for examples of programs used elsewhere in the country, especially in urban districts, to improve student discipline and behavior.” · D’Ann Mazzocca, Random Drug Testing of Students, Connecticut General Assembly, Office of Legislative Research Report No. 97-R-1289 (November 4, 1997).
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COURT CASES:
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· New Jersey v. T.L.O., 469 U.S. 325, 105 S.Ct. 733, 83 L.Ed. 2d 720 (1985). “Under ordinary circumstances, a search of a student by a teacher or other school official will be ‘justified at its inception’ when there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that the search will turn up evidence that the student has violated or is violating either the law or the rules of the school.” (p. 341) · Goss v. Lopez, 419 U.S. 565, 95 S.Ct. 729, 42 L.Ed. 2d 725 (1975). “Students facing temporary suspension have interests qualifying for protection of the Due Process Clause, and due process requires ... that the student be given oral or written notice of the charges against him and, if he denies them, an explanation of the evidence authorities have and an opportunity to present his side of the story.” (p. 581) · Packer v. Board of Education, 246 Conn. 89, 717 A.2d 117 (1998). “In order to subject a student to expulsion, conduct off school grounds must not only violate school policy, it must also be ‘seriously disruptive of the educational process’ for reasons other than the fact that it violated school policy,” (p. 112) “...the language of §10-233d indicates that the legislature intended that the phrase ‘seriously disruptive of the educational process’ apply to conduct that markedly interrupts or severely impedes the day-to-day operation of a school.” (p. 116-117) · Op. Att’y Gen 89-023 (1989). “We conclude that Conn. Gen. Stat. §§ 10-233c and 10-233d permit the transfer or exclusion of students on the basis of off-campus misconduct if such behavior threatens the safety of school property or the welfare of the persons who work or study there.” (p. 130) · Perry v. Wallingford Bd. of Education, Superior Court, judicial district of New Haven at New Haven, Docket No. CV94-0361257S (August 3, 1994). “The statute which authorizes boards of education to expel or suspend students from attendance at public schools ... does not provide for an appeal to the court from such administrative decisions.” · Ambrose v. Singe, Superior Court, judicial district of Danbury, Docket No. 320896, 19 Conn. L. Rptr. 639 (June 10, 1997). Plaintiff alleged that school officials were negligent in so far as they failed to discipline a student who threatened and finally attacked the plaintiff, and that the city was liable pursuant to Conn. Gen. Stat. §10-235.
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FORMS: |
· 6 James A. Rapp, Education Law (2006). Chapter F5. Student control and discipline § F5.01. Student control and discipline Includes sample code of discipline, code of student conduct, and emergency disciplinary procedures § F5.02 Disciplinary Procedures Includes sample notices for detention, probation, suspension, student misconduct, conferences, etc. · 22 Am. Jur. Pl. & Pr. Forms, Schools (2001) Form 120. Petition or application —For writ of mandamus—To compel readmission of expelled student—Insufficient evidence at expulsion hearing Form 121. Petition or application — For writ of mandamus—To compel issuance of diploma by school authorities Form 123. Complaint, petition, or declaration—To enjoin denial of admission of minor to school—By guardian ad litem or next friend Form 127. Complaint, petition, or declaration— To enjoin school authorities from preventing readmission of student indefinitely expelled for alleged intoxication—By next friend Form 129. Answer—Defense—Failure to exhaust administrative remedies following expulsion of student
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ENCYCLOPEDIAS: |
· 68 Am. Jur. 2d Schools (2000). Suspension and expulsion § 298. Generally § 299. Power of school authorities § 300. —Provided by statute § 301. —Principals and teachers Grounds § 302. Generally; insubordination or disobedience § 303. Sale or use of controlled substance or alcohol at school § 304. Use of vulgar or profane language |