Field v. Haddonfield Bd. of Educ.
| Decision Date | 24 July 1991 |
| Docket Number | Civ. No. 90-2984 (MHC). |
| Citation | 769 F. Supp. 1313 |
| Parties | Daniel FIELD and David and Barbara Field, his parents, Plaintiffs, v. HADDONFIELD BOARD OF EDUCATION, Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of New Jersey |
COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED
Herbert D. Hinkle, Lawrenceville, N.J., for plaintiffs.
Capehart & Scatchard, P.A. by Joseph F. Betley, Mt. Laurel, N.J., for defendant.
Plaintiffs filed this action under the Education for All Handicapped Children Act ("EHA"), 20 U.S.C. §§ 1400 et seq., The Handicapped Children's Protection Act ("HCPA"), 20 U.S.C. §§ 1415 et seq. (West 1990). In March of 1989, plaintiffs filed a petition with the New Jersey Department of Education seeking a hearing regarding the placement of their son, Daniel, in an appropriate special education program. As a result of these proceedings, as more fully detailed below, the parties entered into a settlement agreement. Pursuant to section 615(e)(4)(B) of the EHA, plaintiffs seek attorneys fees and costs as prevailing parties of those proceedings. Plaintiffs filed a second petition in March of 1990 for a determination of whether the defendant Haddonfield Board of Education ("the Board") was responsible for the cost of a substance abuse treatment program that Daniel attended. Pursuant to EHA section 615(e)(2), plaintiffs appeal the June 20, 1990 ruling of an Administrative Law Judge ("ALJ"), who held that the program was a "medical service" and, therefore, the responsibility of the parents.
Presently before the court are both parties' respective motions for summary judgment.
A detailed account of the procedural history is required for proper resolution of these motions. During the 1988-89 school year Daniel was a tenth grade student who was classified as emotionally disturbed. In particular, Daniel has expressive and attention disorders, and has a tendency to become frustrated because of his inability to express himself and because of very low self esteem. See, P.App., at Pa3.1 As an emotionally disturbed child, Daniel is eligible for free special education services. See, EHA §§ 602(17), (18); 614(a)(1)(C)(ii). Pursuant to Daniel's individualized educational program ("IEP"),2 Daniel attended classes as a day student at the Alternative School in Cherry Hill, New Jersey for half a day, and the Haddonfield Memorial High School ("HMHS") for the other half. As a result of disciplinary and other problems encountered at the Alternative School, Daniel's parents sought to have Daniel enrolled full-time at HMHS. Although the Haddonfield child study team assigned to Daniel did not concur in plaintiffs' request, the parties agreed to allow Daniel to enroll full-time at the school. As a condition of enrollment, however, Daniel and his parents signed a "Performance Contract" which provided that Daniel would be suspended from the school and transferred to an alternative program outside the district if Daniel failed to comply with his performance requirements. D.App., at Ba13. This agreement was appended to Daniel's 1989 IEP.
On January 13, 1989, Daniel was suspended from HMHS as a result of an altercation he had with a teacher. At that time, the child study team recommended that Daniel be placed as a day student at the Yale School in Cherry Hill, a special education school for emotionally disturbed children. The Fields responded that they did not consider Yale appropriate because of the level of the program. D.App., at Ba21. Rather, after consulting with Dr. Leonard Krivy, an educational consultant, the Fields sought to have Daniel placed in a residential, twenty-four hour per day placement. For financial assistance in securing a residential placement, the Fields were referred to the New Jersey Division of Youth and Family Services ("DYFS"). The DYFS case manager responsible for the Fields' request met with the child study team and other high school staff members on February 28, 1989. On March 8, 1989, however, the DYFS informed Daniel's child study team that the Fields were apparently no longer interested in the services of that agency since the Fields did not contact them despite several requests to do so.
On March 6, 1989, the Fields filed a "due process" petition against the Board pursuant to 20 U.S.C. § 1415(b)(2) and N.J.Admin.Code section 6:28-2.7. See, P.App., at Pa2. The petition alleged four counts. Count I alleged that Daniel was improperly classified as emotionally disturbed and thus should be reclassified. Count II alleged that the homebound instruction that Daniel was receiving was inadequate since less than five hours of instruction per week was provided in three out of the seven weeks that Daniel was homebound. Count II also alleged that Daniel's January 13, 1989 suspension was improper and requested that records of the suspension be expunged. Count III requested that Daniel be placed in a residential placement which plaintiffs felt was necessary "because of the Board's long term failure to provide Daniel with an appropriate educational program that could enable him to overcome the effects of his learning disability, and because of the severity of the emotional problems this has caused Daniel...." P.App., at Pa6. Plaintiffs identified the Landmark School in Massachusetts as an appropriate seven day per week, twelve month per year, residential program. Finally, Count IV alleged that the Board never provided family counseling despite the previous IEP which provided for such counseling, and requested reimbursement for family counseling fees that had been incurred since 1985, estimated to be in excess of $5,000.
On March 28, 1989, the parties participated in a mediation session. The Board maintains that the "fountainhead" issues identified and discussed were Daniel's classification and residential placement. Because the parties were unable to resolve the dispute, a hearing was scheduled before Administrative Law Judge Bernard Goldberg pursuant to N.J.Admin.Code section 6:28-2.7(e)(4)(vi). Around this time, the Fields once again contacted the DYFS to see about getting Daniel placed in a residential placement by that agency. However, on May 10, 1989, the DYFS informed both parties of its determination that a residential placement was "not appropriate" for Daniel. See, D.App., at Ba40.
Prior to the administrative hearing, ALJ Goldberg indicated that he would only hear the issue of whether Daniel needed a residential placement, and not any dispute between the Board and DYFS over who should pay in the event that a residential placement was ordered. At the suggestion of ALJ Goldberg, the parties agreed to resolve the classification and placement issues by way of an independent evaluation by an independent child study team, with both parties being bound to the team's recommendations. See D.App., at Ba48. The Fields also reserved their right to pursue the remaining claims of expunction and reimbursement of counseling and attorneys fees until after the independent evaluation. The Cedar Hill Learning Disability Center ("Cedar Hill") was assigned to perform the evaluation.
On August 17, 1989, Cedar Hill issued its findings and recommendations based on a neuropsychiatric evaluation performed by David J. Gallina, M.D. The report concurred with the Haddonfield child study team's classification of Daniel as emotionally disturbed. Dr. Gallina also recommended a day program rather than a residential placement and specified particular areas that should be addressed to correct Daniel's condition. On August 28, 1989, the parties participated in an IEP conference to outline Daniel's special education program while a suitable placement was investigated. The parties agreed that homebound instruction would be provided while the search for a suitable day program proceeded.
Dr. Barbara Rell, Supervisor of Special Services for the Haddonfield School District, sent a draft of the IEP to the Fields for their review and signature. Dr. Rell noted that an appointment had been scheduled with the Yale School for the Fields to visit. The Fields signed the program, but made numerous revisions to the document, including a notation of the Fields' continued protest of Daniel's classification, a demand for a reading specialist, the development of a distributive education program, transitional counseling on an "as needed" basis rather than one session per week, and implementation of a behavior modification and recreational program while Daniel was on homebound instruction. D.App., at Ba110-17.
As a result of the Fields' modifications, on September 8, 1989, the Board requested a due process hearing with the Department of Education. On that same date, the plaintiffs submitted an ex parte emergent relief application to Judge Goldberg, alleging that the Board was not providing tutoring to Daniel.3 Judge Goldberg granted plaintiffs relief on September 13, 1989, and ordered the Board to provide ten to twenty hours of tutoring during normal school hours.4 The Board intimates that Judge Golberg's order violated the Board's due process rights since they were not notified of the hearing, the order did not allow the Board to move for dissolution or modification of the order in violation of N.J.Admin.Code section 1:6A-12.1(d), there were no findings as to substantial likelihood of success or irreparable harm, and the order was not sent to all parties for purposes of raising objections as to its form within five days as provided in N.J.Admin.Code section 1:6A-12.1(f). However, the Board complied with the order and provided sufficient tutoring services. During this time, various day placement programs were being investigated in addition to the Yale School, including the Mill Creek School located on the grounds of the Institute of Pennsylvania Hospital.
At a settlement conference on September 27, 1989, placement at the Yale School appeared to be the most viable resolution. On ...
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