A State Supreme Court justice ruled yesterday that New York City’s rule prohibiting students from bringing cellphones to public schools was “rational,” rejecting an effort by parents who had sought to overturn the ban. In a 50-page decision, the justice, Lewis Bart Stone, said the court could decide only whether the rule was a reasonable way to prevent students from using cellphones in school and that he could not suggest a different rule, even if he preferred one. “The court finds that banning possession in the school is not an irrational method to accomplish such goal,” he wrote. Justice Stone also rejected a claim that the rule violated students’ and parents’ constitutional rights. “Neither the state nor federal constitutions include any express constitutional right to bear cellphones,” he wrote. Norman Siegel, above, a lawyer for the parents, said they were considering an appeal. “We will not rest until the ban is lifted,” he said. David Cantor, a spokesman for Schools Chancellor Joel I. Klein, said the city was pleased with the decision.
CBS/AP: Judge: City Ban On Cell Phones In Schools OK
(CBS/AP) NEW YORK The city ban on students having cellular telephones in public schools is rational and legal, a judge ruled Monday in support of a policy that parents have vigorously opposed.
The Department of Education's ban has existed for years in the nation's biggest school system, but until last spring many students carried cell phones without risk of punishment.
When the city began random security checks in schools in April 2006 as part of a weapons crackdown, authorities began finding and confiscating hundreds of cell phones, prompting protests over the no-phone policy.
Eight parents who wanted their children to have cell phones in schools filed a lawsuit against the Department of Education on July 13, 2006, challenging the ban as irrational and unsafe. They also argued that it intruded on a parent's right to determine a child's care, custody and control.
DOE officials responded that cell phones were disruptive in schools and could be used for cheating. They said the ban was a reasonable way to preserve a safe learning environment and did not violate anyone's rights.
Manhattan state Supreme Court Justice Lewis Bart Stone agreed.
He said he did "not rule on the wisdom or lack of wisdom of the cell phone rules" or on any future modification or repeal the DOE might choose to make about rules regarding possession of cell phones in public schools.
The judge noted that the parents suggested there might be technological "fixes" that would satisfy both sides, but no suggestion was compelling enough for him to find the DOE cell phone rules faulty.
Even if he were to try to impose a technology-based decision, the judge said, the rapid pace of technological change would probably make obsolete any decision he might issue.
City lawyer Eamonn Foley said the judge "correctly held that the Department of Education had a rational basis to adopt its cell phone policy and that the policy does not violate any constitutional right of students or their parents."
Many parents disagreed with the judge's ruling and were disappointed by it, their attorney Norman Siegel said.
"We remain committed to reversing the ban and are seriously considering appealing the decision," he said. "We will not rest until the cell phone ban is lifted."
NY Daily News: State court says city can ban cell phones in schools
The city ban on students having cellular telephones in public schools is rational and legal, a judge ruled Monday in support of a policy that parents have vigorously opposed.
The Department of Education's ban has existed for years in the nation's biggest school system, but until last spring many students carried cell phones without risk of punishment.
When the city began random security checks in schools in April 2006 as part of a weapons crackdown, authorities began finding and confiscating hundreds of cell phones, prompting protests over the no-phone policy.
Eight parents who wanted their children to have cell phones in schools filed a lawsuit against the Department of Education on July 13, 2006, challenging the ban as irrational and unsafe. They also argued that it intruded on a parent's right to determine a child's care, custody and control.
DOE officials responded that cell phones were disruptive in schools and could be used for cheating. They said the ban was a reasonable way to preserve a safe learning environment and did not violate anyone's rights.
Manhattan state Supreme Court Justice Lewis Bart Stone agreed.
He said he did "not rule on the wisdom or lack of wisdom of the cell phone rules" or on any future modification or repeal the DOE might choose to make about rules regarding possession of cell phones in public schools.
The judge noted that the parents suggested there might be technological "fixes" that would satisfy both sides, but no suggestion was compelling enough for him to find the DOE cell phone rules faulty.
Even if he were to try to impose a technology-based decision, the judge said, the rapid pace of technological change would probably make obsolete any decision he might issue.
City lawyer Eamonn Foley said the judge "correctly held that the Department of Education had a rational basis to adopt its cell phone policy and that the policy does not violate any constitutional right of students or their parents."
SI Advance: Cell phone suit by Island parents against DOE dismissed
The lawsuit filed on behalf of two Staten Island mothers and six other public school parents against the Department of Education's cell phone ban has been dismissed, according to the suit's lead lawyer, Norman Siegel.
The July filing sought to challenge the constitutionality of the cell phone policy - which effectively prohibited students from carrying cell phones to and from school and upset many parents who said their children relied on the devices to keep them safe.
Siegel said his team was considering an appeal of the decision by New York state Supreme Court Justice Lewis Bart Stone.
--Contributed by Yoav Gonen
NY Sun: Parents Lose in Court Case on Cell Phones by SARAH GARLAND
The group's lawyer, Norman Siegel, said he was disappointed, but vowed to continue to fight the city over the ban, which he has argued is unconstitutional.
"It's not over yet," one of the eight plaintiffs in the case, Ellen Bilofsky, said. "It's still an unfair and unenforceable rule, and we intend to keep fighting against it."
Ms. Bilofsky said she was compelled to join the lawsuit after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Her daughter, Jessica — then a 14-year-old freshman at Stuyvesant High School — that day wandered for hours around Manhattan unable to contact her parents because she didn't have a cell phone at the time.
Ms. Bilofsky's son, Alexander, is now a sophomore at Stuyvesant, and she said she constantly fears for his safety when he doesn't carry a phone.
Read More...1010WINS News: State Court Says NYC Can Ban Cell Phones in Schools
NEW YORK (AP) -- The city has a right to ban cell phones from public schools, a court ruled Monday, reinforcing a policy that has angered parents.
The ban had been in place for years in the nation's biggest school system, but until last spring many students carried the phones without consequence.
When the city began random security checks in April 2006 as part of a weapons crackdown, authorities began finding and confiscating hundreds of cell phones, prompting protests over the no-phone policy.
Parents who wanted their children to be able to take phones to schools had sued to strike down the ban. They said it was safer for children to have phones.
The Department of Education said the phones were disruptive and could be used for cheating.
Education officials said the cell phone policy was a reasonable way to preserve a safe learning environment and didn't violate anyone's rights.
"(The Manhattan state Supreme Court) correctly held that the Department of Education had a rational basis to adopt its cell phone policy and that the policy does not violate any constitutional right of students or their parents,'' said Eamonn Foley, a lawyer for the city.
