School sex survey ruling [9th Circuit] News
School sex survey ruling [9th Circuit]

James Fields et. al v. Palmdale School District, US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, Judge Stephen Reinhart, November 2, 2005 [dismissing a lawsuit brought by parents who were angered by a sex survey given to their students in a California school district]. Excerpt:

We… hold that there is no fundamental right of parents to be the exclusive provider of information regarding sexual matters to their children, either independent of their right to direct the upbringing and education of their children or encompassed by it. We also hold that parents have no due process or privacy right to override the determinations of public schools as to the information to which their children will be exposed while enrolled as students. Finally, we hold that the defendants' actions were rationally related to a legitimate state purpose.

Read the full text of the opinion [PDF]. Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.