It is a frustrating situation, and for the moment “squashed” so to speak. My fear is that if my daughter is sick down the line and I can’t get “verfied” absences (which means I have to take her to doctor each time) that it would become a problem again. And the part that worries me most is that their actions escalate – next time is a meeting in front of a board of social workers, police officers, school admin and other “concerned citizens” – then prosecution.

I don’t expect the problem to continue or to ever reach the point of court prosecution, but it is still frustrating and upsetting that the government does not care about details – and in trying to solve a problem may actually make it worse.

As far as 1st Amendment rights – I would agree. If they had gone straight to prosecution based on this year’s attendance record, I would definitely argue that it was a religious choice to leave in October.

I just hate overall how they try to control people’s personal lives – they allow 1 day for you to grieve if the person who died is in State, and 3 to grieve if they are out-of-State. The State is going to tell me what period of mourning is right for me. The State is going to tell me when my child is “really” sick. The State is going to tell me when I can breathe next – which in California is not far off lol.

Thanks for the reply! Hope all is well with you.

Could this be argued on a 1st Amendment issue? He is blaming this on your trip to Mexico, but that was partially a religious observence (a family member was being ordained) and telling you that your daughter could not participate or be there for that means the State is interfering with her freedom of religion.