D.A. Plans Crackdown on Truants, Parents

As most Orange County schools begin classes next week, prosecutors will be cracking down on truancy by seeking court sanctions against students who routinely skip school, along with their parents.

Three deputy district attorneys have been assigned to the new detail and will deal directly with the hundreds of students who are considered habitually truant.

The goal is less to punish students than to get them to stay in school. But repeat violators could face truancy charges in Juvenile Court and be placed on probation.

“Nobody is going to jail after one violation,” said Deputy Dist. Atty. Nikki Erlandson, who is leading the effort. “However, if there’s a violation of the terms of probation, there may be days in custody.”

Parents could also face charges of contributing to the delinquency of a minor if prosecutors feel the parents knew about chronic truancy but did nothing about it.

The initiative marks a change by the district attorney’s office, which has rarely involved itself in truancy cases and filed charges only in the most egregious cases. Assistant Dist. Atty. Jim Tanizaki said his office has prosecuted only a few truants in the last few years.

Prosecutors received state and federal grants of more than $200,000 for the effort, which they hope will reduce crime both by and against truants.

Educators said Tuesday they are pleased by the district attorney’s involvement, adding that the direct involvement of law enforcement could force both parents and students to obey truancy laws.

“When a parent gets a note on the district attorney’s letterhead saying their child is a habitual truant by law, that gets their attention,” said Peggy Adin, director of pupil support services for Santa Ana Unified School District.

Truancy is defined in the state Education Code as three or more unexcused absences in a school year.

Schools will now report problem students to the district attorney’s office. Prosecutors will notify parents in writing and request meetings to discuss ways to keep the children in school.

“Our main focus is to keep kids in school by getting involved in problems early, not just bringing down the hammer,” Erlandson said.

In Santa Ana alone, officials said that about 200 students a year are considered to have excessive unexcused absences.

The city was the site of one of the few truancy cases brought in recent memory against parents. Prosecutors last year filed criminal charges against the parents of a 6-year-old girl who missed 29 days of school in two months. That charge carries a potential penalty of up to six months in jail or a $1,000 fine.

Orange County School Supt. William M. Habermehl said he is encouraged that both educators and law enforcement officials are taking a tougher stand against truancy.

“It used to be that we’d call a kid up and say, ‘Get back in school or you’ll be in trouble,’ ” Habermehl said. “Now we’re getting the parents involved, and we’re getting other agencies involved. There’s a lot more we can do now to solve this problem.”