Trustees Clash Over Hire of New Lawyer

At a contentious meeting Thursday night that left parents crying and school administrators shaking their heads, the three-member majority of the Westminster School District Board of Trustees hired a socially conservative lawyer in an effort to bolster their defiant stance against a state anti-discrimination law.

The move comes as Westminster prepares for a face-off with state education officials that could cost the district millions of dollars in funding.

For months, the three trustees -- Helena Rutkowski, Judy Ahrens and Blossie Marquez-Woodcock -- have held firm to their stance that the law offends their Christian principles because it immorally allows students and teachers to define their genders.

“I can’t believe what I just witnessed,” said a teary-eyed Louise MacIntyre, the district’s PTA president. “How can these three women [hire this man] without listening to the public, without sharing his credentials? We have no idea who he is. It is an abuse of power.”

After the meeting, the lawyer, Mark Bucher, questioned the state’s assertion that the district must revise its discrimination complaint policy to adhere to the law that protects transsexuals and others who do not conform to traditional gender roles.

“Based on what I have seen, I am having a hard time understanding” what law is being broken, he said.

Saying he had not fully reviewed the issue, Bucher declined to elaborate on what recommendations he would make to the board but expressed confidence that the compliance issue could be resolved quickly.

Bucher’s comments contradicted those of California Supt. for Public Instruction Jack O’Connell, who has said that Westminster would be in compliance only if it adopted the recommendations of state auditors.

O’Connell has promised to act quickly to withhold some or all of nearly $8 million in state and federal funds from Westminster if it does not comply by a Monday deadline.

Without the money, district officials have said, Westminster would have to eliminate small classes in primary grades and programs for low-income and English-learning students.

Bucher is co-founder of the Education Alliance, a group that in the late 1990s enjoyed success in getting conservative candidates elected to various Orange County school boards. The alliance has made campaign contributions to Ahrens in the past, according to campaign finance documents filed with the county.

Bucher, who received his law degree from Western State University College of Law in Fullerton and joined the state bar association in 2000, will assume responsibility for the district’s legal matters. He replaces David Larsen, a partner at the law firm of Rutan and Tucker, who has counseled the district since 1977.

At Thursday’s special meeting, the three trustees rejected a compromise suggested by district officials, in which Larsen would have remained to handle other legal matters pending in the district.

Assistant Supt. Sheri Loewenstein expressed concern that current lawsuits could be jeopardized if Larsen were fired and Bucher had to quickly familiarize himself with the caseload.

Board President James Reed jousted repeatedly with the board majority for control of the meeting, during which trustees and the overflow audience of about 100 people often exchanged insults.