Honig v. Doe

Facts of the Case

“John Doe” was an emotionally disturbed student who had difficulty controlling his impulses and anger. In November 1980, at the age of 17, Doe explosively responded to the taunts of a peer by choking the student and then kicking out a school window as he was escorted to the principal's office. Doe was suspended for 5 days. On the fifth day of Doe's suspension, the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) Student Placement Committee notified his mother that it was recommending his expulsion and that his suspension would continue indefinitely until the expulsion proceedings were complete.

Doe, who qualified for special educational services under the IDEA, filed suit against the SFUSD and the California Superintendent of Public Instruction, alleging that their disciplinary actions violated the “stay-put” provision of the (then) EHA. Under the IDEA “stay-put” provisions, children with disabilities must remain in their existing educational placements pending the completion of any review proceedings unless parents and state or local educational officials agree otherwise. Doe alleged that the pending expulsion proceedings triggered the “stay-put” provision and that educators violated his rights in suspending him indefinitely. As such, a federal trial court granted Doe's request for a preliminary injunction ordering school officials to return him to his existing educational placement pending a review of his individualized educational program (IEP).

“Jack Smith” was also an emotionally disturbed, IDEA-eligible student in the SFUSD. Smith typically reacted to stress by becoming verbally hostile and aggressive. When he was in middle school, his disruptive behavior escalated; Smith acted out by stealing, extorting money from other students, and making sexual comments to female classmates. In November 1980, Smith was suspended for 5 days for his lewd comments. As with Doe, the SFUSD Student Placement Committee recommended Smith's expulsion, scheduled an expulsion hearing, and extended the suspension indefinitely until a final disposition of the matter. Having learned of Doe's case, Smith protested the school's actions and eventually intervened in Doe's suit.

After granting Doe's preliminary injunction, the trial court entered a permanent injunction barring officials of the SFUSD from suspending any students with disabilities from school for more than 5 days when their misconduct was disability related or from making any other changes of placement, pending completion of any review proceedings, without parental consent. Further, the court barred the state from approving any unilateral placements, ordered the state to provide services directly to eligible students if the local educational agency failed to do so, and ordered the state either to create a system for monitoring compliance with the IDEA or to enact guidelines for responding to disability-related misconduct. On appeal, the Ninth Circuit affirmed these orders with slight modifications.

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