Homeschool families protected by Mississippi Supreme Court from unconstitutional court order

Overreaching Judge Overruled

- Christian Newswire
Tuesday, April 26, 2011

PURCELLVILLE, Va., The Mississippi Supreme Court ruled1 on April 21, 2011 that a court order issued by Judge Walker requiring state officials to disclose the identities of all the homeschoolers in the Thirteenth District of Mississippi was improper and thus vacated by the higher court. The Supreme Court came to its conclusion after receiving HSLDA’s Writ of Prohibition and Emergency Motion to Stay, Judge Walker’s response, and HSLDA’s response memorandum.

Without due cause, a case in consideration, or even a complaint before his court, Judge Walker of the Chancery Court of the Thirteenth District in Mississippi issued a court order on March 23, 2011. This order required attendance officers in five counties to provide Judge Walker with a list of the names and addresses of all homeschoolers in those counties.

This order would have provided Judge Walker with information that he was not legally entitled to as a judge, and homeschool families who would have been affected by this judicial overreach contacted the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA). An HSLDA team made up of Michael Farris, Jim Mason, and local counsel Sharkey Burke began work on the case. As others advocated backroom deals and “under the radarâ€