Los Angeles, CA – Today, the California Court of Appeal upheld the fundamental right of parents to homeschool their children. The ruling comes after a request for a rehearing, and reverses an earlier adverse determination. Liberty Counsel filed a brief on the case in favor of a parent’s right to homeschool their children. 

The court concluded that “California statutes permit homeschooling as a species of private school education and the statutory permission to homeschool may constitutionally be overridden in order to protect the safety of a child who has been declared dependent.” Much of its decision was based on previous statutes, which recognized homeschools as private schools.

On February 28, 2008, the Court of Appeal ruled that parents who lack teaching credentials do not have the right to school their children at home. The decision immediately became the subject of sharp criticism across the Nation, and a U.S. House resolution called for reconsideration of the case. The California Court of Appeal agreed to rehear the case.

Liberty Counsel filed a 57-page brief on behalf of 19 members of the United States Congress. The brief overviews home education laws of all fifty states and the District of Columbia, where it is legal. In 1925, the U.S. Supreme Court stated: “The fundamental theory of liberty upon which all governments in this Union repose excludes any general power of the state to standardize its children by forcing them to accept instruction from public teachers only. The child is not the mere creature of the state; those who nurture him and direct his destiny have the right, coupled with the high duty, to recognize and prepare him for additional obligations.”

Congressional members represented by Liberty Counsel include: Ken Calvert (CA-44), John Campbell (CA-48), David Davis (TN-1), John Doolittle (CA-4), Tom Feeney (FL-24), Randy Forbes (VA-4), Trent Franks (AZ-2), Robin Hayes (NC-8), Wally Herger (CA-2), Jim Jordan (OH-4), Doug Lamborn (CO-5), Dan Lungren (CA-3), Thaddeus McCotter (MI-11), Gary Miller (CA-42), Marilyn Musgrave (CO-4), Ed Royce (CA-40), Pete Sessions (TX-32), Mark Souder (IN-3), and  Howard McKeon (CA-25), who introduced H. Res. 1076, urging the courts to uphold the fundamental right of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children.

Steve Crampton, General Counsel for Liberty Counsel, commented: “We are pleased that the court recognized what all other states have also recognized, namely that the child is not the mere creature of the state. Homeschooling is a constitutionally protected alternative to placing one’s children in government schools, which frequently push harmful political and social agendas.”

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