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Students file claims

By Neil Nisperos/Staff Writer
Sixteen Lompoc students, detained and cited in March by police who prevented their daytime immigration policy protest, have filed claims against the school district.

Filed last week, the claims could cost the district about $10,000 for each student, according to an attorney who represents the students.

The students are part of a group of 30 whose offer to settle with the school district was rejected last month. The city and the police department have tentatively accepted the same settlement offer, which granted no monetary compensation for students.

Jeannie Barrett, an attorney with the California Rural Legal Assistance and representative, said she advised the students that $10,000 would be a fair amount, but they could ask for more or less. She said she did not know how much each student claimed.

The school district can reject or accept the claims. If they reject the claims, the students could file a class-action lawsuit, Barrett said.

Police and city officials are expected to complete the terms of the settlement in a public meeting Tuesday in which they will formally apologize to students. The settlement also calls for the citations to be expunged from the students' records and for police to undergo training in the meaning of the First Amendment.

Barrett said she and the parents of the students are annoyed by the school district's refusal to agree to the settlement.

“The police has agreed to do this and we're asking less of the district in the sense that the city has to expunge the records of the students,” Barrett said. “The district didn't have to do any of that - just (First Amendment) staff training and a discussion with students of what they have a right to do and what they don't have a right to do. I have no idea why they thought that was so onerous.”

Frank Lynch, Lompoc schools superintendent, declined to comment on the situation. Wednesday, Dino Velez, the attorney representing the school district, asked for questions to be submitted in writing and said he would respond as soon as possible.

Thirty students, represented by California Rural Legal Assistance, said their constitutional right to free speech was violated when police halted a protest of proposed immigration legislation March 31 at Lompoc High School.

Police, working in conjunction with the Lompoc Unified School District, cited 61 students for violating the city's daylight loitering ordinance. Police and school officials said the students were violating the law by skipping school.

Some students were handcuffed at the school. Students were detained in a school bus or patrol cars and released to their parents at the police department. None were allowed to return to class that day.

Barrett said police ignored a clause in the city's ordinance, Section 2103, which pertains to daylight loitering by minors. An exemption in that law allows students to exercise their First Amendment rights of freedom of speech and assembly.

On the day of the protest, Lynch explained the reason for the police and district response.

“Our concern is the kids need to be in school,” he said. “They have a right to protest, but just not during school hours.”

Steve Pent, a parent of one of the cited students, disagreed.

“It's kind of contradictory,” he said. “If the school district wanted to prevent kids from missing school, why didn't they allow the kids to go back to school. In other words, when the kids were picked up, why didn't they get bused back to the school (after being cited).”

Neil Nisperos can be reached at 737-1059 or nnisperos@lompocrecord.com.

Aug. 3, 2006