Homeschooling Threatened By Bill Being Rushed Through State Assembly

Legislation that would give the Division of Youth and Family Services broad powers to prevent families from homeschooling their children is being fast tracked through the State Assembly. 

The bill, A2881, was filed last Thursday and is scheduled for a hearing before the Assembly Women and Children Committee this morning.  The Committee Chair, Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt is sponsor of the bill.

Scott Woodruff, Senior Counsel of the Home School Legal Defense Association, says the legislation goes too far.  He has asked that Lampitt postpone the hearing so that homeschool representatives can meet with her to discuss whether a narrow, more targeted bill can be drafted that would address legitimate needs without hampering parents homeschool program is not even in question.  Lampitt has not responded.

Woodruff says that the bill gives DYFS “blank check power to prohibit homeschooling for any reason or no reason at all.”

DYFS has a history of making poor decisions about children in their
care. They should not be given blank-check authority to make
educational decisions about home schooled children.

Consider these situations which have nothing to do with education but
which might lead to a child coming under DYFS supervision:

–a child gets in a fight at the local park, and a judge gives DYFS
supervision of the child;
–a baby gets sick and a judge decides the family waited too long to
go to the emergency room, and places all the family’s other kids under
DYFS supervision;  
–a family is remodelling and the house is so messy that a judge gives
DYFS suervision of the kids;
–a family with 6 biological children adopts a 10-year old orphan from
Russia who starts makes up bizarre stories about maltreatment, and a
judge gives DYFS supervision over all kids as a result.  

This bill is probably unnecessary. If a judge ever actually takes
jurisdiction of a child, which usually happens in serious cases, the
judge probably already has the power to make decisions about the
child’s education.

This bill may make people afraid to accept services from DYFS.

The bill provides no definition of “care, custody or supervision,” so
we don’t even know for sure what situations would cause a family to
come under DYFS’ power to prohibit homeschooling. Nor does the bill
define “homeschool.” This could allow a judge power to define
homeschooling in a way that threatens the freedom of families.

The bill gives the Department of Education power to create regulations
to carry out the bill’s provisions. Regulations are created by the
will of bureacrats, not by a democratic process. Because of this, they
can be hostile to the rights of individuals.

The bill’s language starts by saying “notwithstanding any provision of
law to the contrary, …” This means that all other state laws must
give way to this new billl. Every other right you have under state law
will be below this bill.

The members of the Assembly Women and Children Committee are:

Chair: Pamela R. Lampitt (D) District 6 Voorhees 856.435.1247 

Vice Chair: Angel Fuentes (D) District 5 

(856) 547-4800 (Audubon)
(856) 541-1251 (Camden)
(856) 853-2960 (Woodbury)

Caroline Casagrande (R) District 11- Freehold     732.866.1695 

Betty Lou DeCroce (R) District 26 – Whippany 973.884.6190

Gabriela Mosquera (D) District 4

856) 232-6700 (Turnersville)
(856) 401-3073 (Blackwood)

Gary S. Schaer (D) – District 36 – Passaic 973.249.3665

Benjie E. Wimberly (D) District 35 – Paterson 973.247.1521

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Angelini Looking Into Jackson DYFS Case

By Art Gallagher

Prompted by our post this morning, Assemblywoman Mary Pat Angelini (R-Monmouth) is looking into the DYFS case of the Jackson family.   Angelini’s office called this afternoon seeking contact information for the Jackson’s, which MMM tracked down.

Angelini serves on the Assembly Human Services Committee which overseas DYFS.

While I have not heard the DYFS side of this story, the more I hear of the Jacksons’ story the more disturbing this becomes.  Major and Mrs. Jackson have been separated from their children, and their children separated from each other, since April of last year without the benefit of due process, if what I am hearing is accurate.

The Jackson’s took one of their children to an emergency room last April.  The child was dehydrated and had elevated sodium levels.  DYFS says the child was poisoned and removed all five of the Jackson’s children from their custody the following day.  The Jackson’s doctors say  the elevated sodium level is medically normal for the condition the child was suffering from.

At an administrative hearing yesterday, DYFS objected to the Jacksons’ doctors tesitfying.  The hearing has been adjourned until February.

That’s what I’ve heard so far.  MMM will stay on top of this story.  We are pleased that Angelini is looking into it.

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Disturbing DYFS Story Regarding A Military Hero’s Family

Military Hero Loses All 5 Children to State

By Art Gallagher

This disturbing story published at The Tea Party Daily News was just brought to MMM’s attention.

The story is of Major John Jackson and his wife Carolyn fighting the State of New Jersey for custody of their five children who were taken from them and placed in foster care by DYFS after one of the children was hospitalized for dehydration that resulted from a fever. 

According to the Tea Party Daily News report, two the the children, ages 9 and 10, have been physically and emotionally abused while in foster care.

The Jackson’s case is the subject of an administrative hearing in Morris County this week, according to an MMM reader familiar with the case.

MMM has not investigated the facts of this story. The Tea Party Daily News story is clearly written with a pro-Jackson, anti-DYFS slant, which may or may not be appropriate.   We are bringing the situation to our readers’ attention in the best interests of the children involved and with the hope that one or more of our readers in positions of power will look into the case with an unbiased eye.

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