San Diegans Challenge Perpetual
Court Assignment of Pupils,
Emanating from Carlin v. Board of Education,
To Restore Local Control
According to the Constitution

On December 1, the Response of Groundswell argued that extraordinary relief was not warranted because abdication of jurisdiction by the Board (1) lacked a legal basis and (2) inequitably denied Intervenors of their civil rights under Proposition 209 and other laws. It concluded that the Order Modifying the Final Order was in line with federal decisional law:

... The most recent federal desegregation decisions emphasize the importance of “(r)eturning schools to the control of local authorities at the earliest practicable date (as) essential to restore their true accountability in our governmental system.” Freeman (1992), supra, 118 L.Ed. 108 2d. at 134. See also Board of Educ. of Oklahoma City P. Sch. v. Dowell, 111 S.Ct. 630,638 (1991). ...

On December 8, the Los Angeles Unified School District and the California Voluntary Integration Association each received permission and filed amicus curiae briefs supporting the Board.
 

Fourth District Court of Appeal Sustains Trial Court's Order Terminating Jurisdiction

On January 10, 1998, counsel for the Board and the Carlin Plaintiffs argued in support of the Board's Petition to Mandate reinstatement of the January 1, 2001 date of termination; while Enstrom, for Groundswell Intervenors, opposed the petition.

On February 9, 1998 the District Court of Appeal rendered its decision in Board of Education v. Superior Court, 61 Cal. App.4th 411 (Feb. 1998), denying the Petition for Writ of Mandate. The Court at 61 Cal.App.4th 419 cited favorably the cases of great significance to Groundswell, namely Dowell (498 U.S. 237,238) and Freeman (503 U.S. 467,489), emphasizing prompt return of local control to a school system that is operating in compliance with the Constitution.

The Court also noted the importance of the termination of jurisdiction to Groundswell parents and their children:
 

Carlin v. Board of Education, San Diego Unified School District,
San Diego Superior Court No. 303800 (1967-1998)
San Diego, California
Enstrom: pro bono counsel, 1979-1998
 

Dowell 

Board of Ed. of Oklahoma City v. Dowell, 498 U.S. 237 (1990)
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
 

Board of Educ. of Oklahoma City P.Sch. v. Dowell, 111 S.Ct. 630 (1991)
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
 

Freeman 

Freeman v. Pitts, 503 U.S. 467, 112 S.Ct. 1430 (1992)
DeKalb County School System (DCSS),
DeKalb County, Georgia
 

Board of Education v. Superior Court, 61 Cal.App.4th 411 (Feb.1998)
[conclusion of Carlin v. Board of Education]
San Diego, California
Enstrom: pro bono counsel
   

— Handbook: Challenge Five, pages 65 - 74 —