Jenna R.P. v. City of Chi.
Decision Date | 31 December 2013 |
Docket Number | Docket No. 1–11–2247. |
Citation | 378 Ill.Dec. 362,2013 IL App (1st) 112247,3 N.E.3d 927 |
Parties | JENNA R.P. and E. Scott P., as her Guardian and Next Friend, Plaintiffs–Appellants, v. The CITY OF CHICAGO SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 229 and the Illinois State Board of Education, Defendants–Appellees. |
Court | United States Appellate Court of Illinois |
OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE
Eric S. Palles, of Ravitz & Palles, P.C., of Chicago, for appellants.
Patrick J. Rocks and Lee Ann Lowder, both of Board of Education Law Department, of Chicago, for appellees.
Presiding Justice GORDON delivered the judgment of the court, with opinion.
¶ 1 Plaintiffs, Jenna R.P. (Jenna) and E. Scott P. (Scott), as her guardian and next friend, appeal an order of the circuit court of Cook County which found in favor of defendants City of Chicago School District No. 229 (District) and the Illinois State Board of Education (Board), denying plaintiffs reimbursement of Jenna's tuition and expenses for her placement at a private boarding school. For the following reasons, we reverse.
¶ 3 Plaintiffs filed this lawsuit pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) (20 U.S.C. §§ 1400 et seq. (2006)) and the Illinois School Code (School Code) (105 ILCS 5/14–1.10 (West 2008)). A brief description of the statute will aid in understanding this litigation. The purpose of IDEA is to provide all children with disabilities with a free appropriate public education. 20 U.S.C. § 1400(d)(1)(A) (2006). One of the primary tools to further this objective is the individualized education program (IEP). The IEP is a “written statement for each child with a disability,” which describes the child's present levels of achievement and performance, the child's measurable annual goals, and the special education and related services to be provided to the child. 20 U.S.C. § 1414(d)(1)(A)(2006). The IEP is developed by an “IEP Team,” which ordinarily must include the child's parents, a regular education teacher, a special education teacher, and a representative of the local educational agency. 20 U.S.C. § 1414(d)(1)(B) (2006). IDEA provides parents challenging an IEP with comprehensive procedural safeguards, including the right to an impartial due process hearing. 20 U.S.C. §§ 1415(f),(g) (2006). Any party aggrieved by the findings and decision made by the state educational agency has the right to file a civil action with respect to the complaint presented pursuant to section 1415 in a federal district court or a state court of competent jurisdiction. 20 U.S.C. § 1415(i)(2) (2006). The complaint in this case was filed in the circuit court of Cook County pursuant to section 1415(i)(2).
¶ 5 The record on appeal here, consisting primarily of the testimony and other evidence adduced at the due process hearing before the Board, discloses the following facts. In 1989, Jenna was adopted at birth by Scott and Rona S. (Rona). According to Scott, he and Rona separated when Jenna was three or four years old. Jenna's toilet training at 3 1/2 years old included behavior modification treatment.
¶ 6 Jenna attended kindergarten and first grade at a private school named North Shore. She transferred to start the second grade at Near North Montessori, another private school. Jenna initially had trouble making new friends at the new school.
¶ 7 According to Scott, Jenna was molested from ages six to eight by a neighbor approximately five years older. Jenna's parents divorced in 1997, when she was approximately nine years old. Scott testified the divorce became acrimonious in 2000 and Jenna suffered as a result. In October 2001, when Jenna was almost 12 years old, her parents retained Dr. Heidi Hamernik, a neuropsychologist, because Jenna was temperamental and had difficulty maintaining friendships and interpreting social cues. According to Dr. Hamernik, Jenna had a verbal IQ in the average range and an above-average performance IQ. Dr. Hamernik opined that Jenna's greatest difficulties were “within the social-emotional arena.” Dr. Hamernik did not diagnose Jenna with a major depressive disorder, but found her sad, anxious and despondent. Dr. Hamernik suggested Jenna's parents share her evaluation and recommendations for addressing Jenna's difficulties in organizing her thoughts, becoming caught up in details and forgetting to write down or turn in homework.
¶ 8 Jenna's grades deteriorated during her eighth-grade year at Near North Montessori, which was the 2003–04 academic year. Jenna received counseling from psychologist Lori Buckenberger between the ages of 13 and 15 years old. In June 2004, Dr. Buckenberger discussed with Jenna's parents the need to closely monitor Jenna's transition to high school “due to her history of poor academic follow through, poor organizational skills, and nonverbal learning disability.” In February 2005, Dr. Buckenberger reported there had been no follow-up on any monitoring program for Jenna.
¶ 10 In September 2004, Jenna began attending Lane Technical High School (Lane Tech). According to Scott, he and his ex-wife agreed that to assist the transition, Jenna would live with his ex-wife and visit him on alternate weekends. As the semester progressed, Jenna began failing some subjects and was teased by her basketball teammates. On one occasion, several girls pushed Jenna into the snow. Jenna's school attendance began to decline.
¶ 11 According to Scott, in February 2005, Jenna was cohabiting with a slightly older boy at her mother's house. Rona took Jenna to Children's Memorial Hospital to address the situation. While at the hospital, Jenna discussed a plan to hang herself. Jenna was then hospitalized in the psychiatric ward. Hospital clinicians were concerned Jenna was depressed and having adjustment problems. The clinicians also opined that Jenna was developing a cluster of borderline personality traits, but did not diagnose her with personality disorder due to her age.
¶ 12 After Jenna was discharged from the hospital, Rona requested that Lane Tech evaluate Jenna to determine whether she qualified for special education. In March 2005, a Chicago Public Schools psychologist found Jenna's achievement fell at or above the ninth-grade level and her IQ was in the average to above-average range. According to Scott, he and Rona participated in the development of an IEP for Jenna in April 2005. The IEP reflects that Jenna had a primary disability of “emotional disturbance,” but was also found to have a learning disability. The IEP contained strategies to reduce Jenna's academic stress by deceasing her course load and granting time in a special education resource room. Nevertheless, in her freshman year, Jenna accumulated 68 absences, failed five subjects and earned only 3 1/2 academic credits of the 24 credits required for a diploma.
¶ 13 During Jenna's sophomore year, on December 8, 2005, Rona participated in an evaluation of Jenna's IEP. On that date, Jenna was receiving an “A” in world studies, a “C” in Italian, a “D” in music appreciation, and was failing geometry and American literature. The IEP was modified to include, among other items: extended time for tests, quizzes, projects, essays and research papers; a small group or resource room set for testing; test and homework modifications, as needed; allowance for calculator use; provision of class notes, as needed; and a modified grading scale. In addition, Jenna was assigned to a special education resource room for 450 minutes weekly, to assist her with time management, independent functioning and organizational skills. Further, a special education teacher was assigned to Jenna to provide accommodations for her in her general education geometry and earth science classes. Jenna was also scheduled for 60 minutes of social work weekly, to improve Jenna's self-esteem and help her develop positive attachments.
¶ 14 According to Scott, however, Jenna began receiving homebound tutoring based on her truancy problem. Jack Cox, a social worker at Lane Tech, testified Jenna received a minimal amount of homebound tutoring because she was not at home. Jenna accumulated 115 absences and received no academic credits. Her class ranking at the end of the 2005–06 academic year was 919 out of 926.
¶ 15 Jenna went missing in spring 2006. According to Scott, Jenna had later informed him she was living with a woman and her pimp. Jenna also said the pimp wanted to prostitute her, but she refused. Jenna further admitted she had once smoked crack cocaine. On May 2, 2006, Rona met with Jenna's IEP Team by telephone to revise the IEP. The IEP does not note Jenna was missing from home.
¶ 16 In May 2006, Rona notified Scott that Jenna had been missing for over one month. Scott hired a private investigator to find Jenna. After locating Jenna, Scott placed her in an inpatient psychiatric hospital, where the staff told him Jenna was severely depressed, oppositional and defiant, with a cluster of borderline personality traits. The hospital recommended long-term residential care.
¶ 18 On May 26, 2006, Scott decided to send Jenna to the Aspen Achievement Academy in Utah. He retained individuals otherwise employed as prison guards or correctional officers to escort Jenna to Utah. The academy is a wilderness-therapy program, in which adolescents are dropped off in the Utah desert and taught to survive in groups.
¶ 19 Jenna was given a psychological evaluation by Dr. Jeffrey D. Rush during her time in Utah. Dr. Rush's report refers to a number of traumatic events in Jenna's life, including her mother's illness, an alleged gang rape and a recent abortion. Dr. Rush diagnosed Jenna with dysthemic disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder,...
To continue reading
Request your trial-
Gallaher v. Hasbrouk
... ... River Park, Inc. v. City of Highland Park, 184 Ill.2d 290, 302, 234 Ill.Dec. 783, 703 N.E.2d 883, ... ...
-
Porter v. Ill. State Bd. of Educ.
...under section 14–8.02a of the Code, which has not been addressed by this court. Cf. Jenna R.P. v. City of Chicago School District No. 229, 2013 IL App (1st) 112247, 378 Ill.Dec. 363, 3 N.E.3d 927 (analyzing claim for public funding of private placement under section 1415). A FAPE is one tha......
-
Jason O. v. Manhattan Sch. Dist. No. 114
...substantively deficient (and thus might have extended the relevant time limitation under Jenna R.P. v. City of Chicago School District No. 229 , 378 Ill.Dec. 362, 3 N.E.3d 927, 943–44 (Ill.App.Ct.2013) ), but Plaintiffs failed to properly raise this issue in the proceedings below. Joint Sup......
-
Stanek v. Saint Charles Cmty. Unit Sch. Dist.
...officer's decision, is the two-year statute of limitations for personal-injury claims in Illinois. Jenna R.P. v. City of Chicago Sch. Dist. No. 229, 3 N.E.3d 927, 943-944 (Ill. App. Ct. 2013). The TAC was filed on May 5, 2016, or almost three years after Matthew graduated high school. As a ......