Law and Rights
By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995
School staff willfully inflicting physical pain to students is considered corporal punishment and prohibited in California unless certain exceptions exist. As such, hitting, pulling hair, pinching, kicking, and other forms of physically painful contact with a student, usually is unacceptable and illegal.
In California Education Code 49001, "Corporal Punishment" is defined as: "willful infliction of, or willfully causing the infliction of, physical pain on a pupil." This means that any PHYSICAL PAIN caused intentionally to a student, by a person employed or engaged by a school, is not okay. Would purposefully slamming a student into a wall, spanking a student, slapping their hand with a ruler, and/or lifting a student out of a pool by their hair be considered "corporal punishment?" To determine this, ask yourself: was physical pain caused to the student? Was the physical pain intentionally caused by the school representative? If the answer is yes, the conduct could constitute prohibited corporal punishment under section 49001 so long as it does not fit under an exception.
Education Code 49001 lists the exceptions to corporal punishment as follows:
If a student were pulled by their hair to prevent drowning, knocked into a wall in an attempt to obtain a gun, or hurt when the staff member was trying to stop from being punched, causing physical pain might not be considered prohibited under the circumstances. But we can all see how that is different from going after a kid to cause them pain with no legitimate reason. If there were harm caused in a justified situation, the only question then would be, was the physical pain caused "reasonable and necessary?" That may be a matter of opinion as even in "self-defense," staff can go too far.
If parents encounter what they believe to be intentionally caused physical pain and/or harm by a teacher or other school representative, they should not let it go. Parents must take action and immediately contact an attorney to help draft and file a proper personnel and/or other type of complaint to ensure the person involved is corrected and the matter resolved. Otherwise, the staff member could continue their improper conduct with even more dire consequences the next time.
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Law and Rights
Corporal Punishment: Intentionally Causing Physical Pain To A Student Is Prohibited in California
By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995
School staff willfully inflicting physical pain to students is considered corporal punishment and prohibited in California unless certain exceptions exist. As such, hitting, pulling hair, pinching, kicking, and other forms of physically painful contact with a student, usually is unacceptable and illegal.
In California Education Code 49001, "Corporal Punishment" is defined as: "willful infliction of, or willfully causing the infliction of, physical pain on a pupil." This means that any PHYSICAL PAIN caused intentionally to a student, by a person employed or engaged by a school, is not okay. Would purposefully slamming a student into a wall, spanking a student, slapping their hand with a ruler, and/or lifting a student out of a pool by their hair be considered "corporal punishment?" To determine this, ask yourself: was physical pain caused to the student? Was the physical pain intentionally caused by the school representative? If the answer is yes, the conduct could constitute prohibited corporal punishment under section 49001 so long as it does not fit under an exception.
Education Code 49001 lists the exceptions to corporal punishment as follows:
"An amount of force that is reasonable and necessary for a person ... to quell a disturbance threatening physical injury to persons or damage to property, for purpose of self-defense, or to obtain possession of weapons or other dangerous objects within the control of the pupil is not ... corporal punishment. "
If a student were pulled by their hair to prevent drowning, knocked into a wall in an attempt to obtain a gun, or hurt when the staff member was trying to stop from being punched, causing physical pain might not be considered prohibited under the circumstances. But we can all see how that is different from going after a kid to cause them pain with no legitimate reason. If there were harm caused in a justified situation, the only question then would be, was the physical pain caused "reasonable and necessary?" That may be a matter of opinion as even in "self-defense," staff can go too far.
If parents encounter what they believe to be intentionally caused physical pain and/or harm by a teacher or other school representative, they should not let it go. Parents must take action and immediately contact an attorney to help draft and file a proper personnel and/or other type of complaint to ensure the person involved is corrected and the matter resolved. Otherwise, the staff member could continue their improper conduct with even more dire consequences the next time.
Best,
Michelle Ball
Education Law Attorney
LAW OFFICE OF MICHELLE BALL
717 K Street, Suite 228
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: 916-444-9064
Fax: 916-444-1209
Website: http://www.edlaw4students.com/
Education Law Attorney
LAW OFFICE OF MICHELLE BALL
717 K Street, Suite 228
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: 916-444-9064
Fax: 916-444-1209
Website: http://www.edlaw4students.com/
Blog: http://edlaw4students.blogspot.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/michelleaball
Please see my disclaimer on the bottom of my blog page [http://edlaw4students.blogspot.com/]. This is legal information, not legal advice and no attorney-client relationship is formed by this posting, etc. etc.! This blog may not be reproduced without permission from the author and proper attribution of authorship.
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By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 Bullying has been a hot topic recently, due to its prevalence in schools: on the bus, in the classrooms, in the bathrooms, and generally wherever students interact. Do you remember...
- How Do You Get Your Kids School Records Released?
By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 School records created by a high school, elementary school, private school, or school district, can loom as an unknown for many parents. One way to debunk the mystery is to...
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By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 Schools may question students to investigate bullying at school, ask about fights a student has seen, or inquire about something the student may have done at school. However,...
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By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 I previously blogged about offenses which do not give California school districts any discretion on whether to recommend and/or actually expel a student. However, there is a...
- When Must A Student Expulsion Be Recommended (but Maybe Not Issued)?
By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 I earlier blogged regarding the Big 5 mandatory expulsion categories, for which a student must be both recommended and expelled should allegations be proven correct [http://edlaw4students.blogspot.com/2011/01/when-is-school-expulsion-mandatory-in.html]....