Jenn-Ching Luo v. Owen J. Roberts School District, et al.

This petition is regarding the stay-put provision, e.g., 20 U.S.C. §1415(j), of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”). In Honig v. Doe. 484 U.S. 305, 306 (1988), the Supreme Court held: The "stay-put" provision prohibits state or local school authorities from unilaterally excluding disabled children from the classroom for dangerous or disruptive conduct growing out of their disabilities during the pendency of review proceedings. Section 1415(e)(3) [recodified in §1415(j)] is unequivocal in its mandate that "the child shall remain in the then current educational placement" (emphasis added), and demonstrates a congressional intent to strip schools of the unilateral authority they had traditionally employed to exclude disabled students, particularly emotionally disturbed students, from school. Petitioner respectfully presents the following question: Can the Third Circuit disobey the Supreme Court's holding to rule that age 21 is a condition to end stay-put protection?