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NNA is an international news agency covering and interpreting news and events from a perspective which incorporates the spirit and endeavours spiritual understanding as it relates to the development of new paradigms in every area of life, be it current affairs, politics and society, civil society, ecology, education, economics, agriculture, the arts or the sciences. |
Setback for Californian school districts in PLANS legal action
SAN FRANCISCO (NNA) – In the legal action by PLANS (People for Legal and Non-Sectarian Schools) against two Californian public school districts for operating Waldorf-method schools, the school districts suffered a setback when the appeal court ruled last month in favour of the plaintiff and referred the case back to the district court. In its ruling, the United States Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals said the District Court for the Eastern District of California had erred in excluding the testimony of witnesses. The anti-Waldorf organisation has been battling unsuccessfully since 1998 to prove in court that anthroposophy is a religion and that publicly-funded schools using Waldorf methods in the United States are “intrinsically and inseparably based upon Anthroposophy, an occultist sect”, thus violating the US and Californian constitutions. At the district court hearing in September 2005, the action brought by PLANS against the Sacramento Unified and Twin Ridges schools districts collapsed after 30 minutes, partly for technical reasons, when Judge Frank C. Damrell agreed with the defence that the plaintiffs had failed properly to disclose witnesses. PLANS was then unable to present any other admissible evidence. Describing the plaintiff’s evidence as “rank hearsay”, Judge Damrell in his conclusions found that “plaintiff failed to carry its evidentiary burden of establishing that anthroposophy is a religion for purposes of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution or other California constitutional provisions involved in this case.” PLANS contended that Judge Damrell's rulings were incorrect and its appeal was heard on 9 November of this year. Commenting on the outcome, lawyers for the defendants said the ruling was on a technicality. The district court has scheduled a status conference for early next year when the court will determine how the case will proceed. END/nna/cva Item: 071221-01EN Date: 21 December 2007 Copyright 2007 News Network Anthroposophy Limited. All rights reserved. See: www.nna-news.org/copyright/ More NNA reports at: www.nna-news.org/en/ |
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