Parent Wins Legal Fees From Schools

The Pasadena Unified School District must pay more than $16,000 in legal fees for a parent who successfully sued the district over how it worded items he asked the board to put on its agenda.

Judge Coleman Swart ruled Wednesday that the district must pay the fees of the U.S. Justice Foundation attorney who represented Rene Amy, a parent and longtime school system critic.

Last year, Amy requested that two items be placed on the school board agenda for discussion: the district’s search and seizure procedures and its conflict-of-interest policy.

Rather than use a 20-word description of the subject as required by the Ralph M. Brown Open Meetings Act, the district listed one item on its January agenda as “Rene Amy PUSD Embarrassment.” A second listing a few weeks later simply said “Rene Amy.”

District officials refused demands by Amy’s attorney to place a full description on the agenda and a Superior Court judge ruled in Amy’s favor a few months ago.