Prosecutor to Homeschoolers: No Compromise-You're Going to Jail
Germany:
November 27th, 2009
Via HSLDA:
Juergen and Rosemary Dudek of Archfeldt, Germany, were sentenced to 90 days in prison in July 2008 because they homeschool their children. Their sentence was overturned by an appeals court because of a legal error, and a new trial was ordered. Their new trial began November 16. German news reports indicate the judge appears disposed to seek a compromise. But prosecutor Herwig Mueller has vowed to appeal any sentence that does not include jail time for these parents, who have been in the spotlight for years because of their insistence on homeschooling. This was the same prosecutor who appealed the lower court sentence of only a fine, saying to the family, "You don't have to worry about the fine because I will send you to jail."
Quoting chair.r13:
Should they be relaxed?
Quoting allyson2212:
Similar things happened here in Texas before they "redid" their home school laws. Now its VERY relaxed, I home school :)
I think that they should be more strict, but honestly Im not complaining. I get to buy the curriculum that I want, and go at the pace that my kids need. My 6 year old just started on his 2nd grade lessons, hes doing great. But I know there are enough people out there that need stricter rules, and if they came out with them then I would follow them.
*Does anyone else see the lines under curriculum?? I think I need to do a clean-up on my computer because its going to a link that I didnt put there... Crap.
But WHY are these people going to jail or being punished? Is homeschooling illegal in Germany? Or is it something else? I'm lost! You should be able to homeschool if you want to, as long as your children are being actually taught- my sister's MIL doesn't actually teach the children anything- she does the work for them, or pays someone to do it, and the only reason she is homeschooling them is because the adoption of the youngest isn't clear yet and the school will not allow her to use their last name, only the child's real last name(until she's adopted, it's the birthparents') and she doesn't want any of the children to know they are all adopted! That, and she believes that kids should naturally get lice, and should NOT get rid of it b/c it makes your hair healthy, so all her lo's have lice! Ugh- that woman is ignorant!
this... it says NOTHING about what the problem is. Are they disobeying the laws? I haven't lived in germany in a long time, but didn't know anyone who homeschooled so I don't know the rules.
Quoting lovingmy4babies:
But WHY are these people going to jail or being punished? Is homeschooling illegal in Germany? Or is it something else? I'm lost! You should be able to homeschool if you want to, as long as your children are being actually taught-
Relaxed as far as allowing a family to homeschool? Yes. Relaxed as far as not bothering to make sure the family is holding up their end of the deal and giving the children a good education? Well, no. But this is a very hard thing to regulate. What it comes down to is I don't want the government educating my children. I know their needs, I know their learning styles, and as far as I'm concerned their education is my job and my responsibility. My oldest simply does not belong in puplic school, he would gain nothing by it.
Quoting chair.r13:
Should they be relaxed?
Quoting allyson2212:
Similar things happened here in Texas before they "redid" their home school laws. Now its VERY relaxed, I home school :)
Missi....loving wife to Jason, mommy to Ricky (1-12-05), and soon to be mommy to Logan Douglas (due Feb 2010). I'm a cloth diapering, baby wearing, breastfeeding till baby wants to quit, homeschooling, non-circumcising, anti-cry it out, part time working, animal loving, trashy romance novel reading, farm raised hillbilly. I have had Meningitis and Swine Flu and lived to tell about it. Any questions?
Ah I read more of the article.Personally it's moronic and the prosecuter is being a douche bag. Those parents do not deserve jail time.
Hopefully Germany steps up and begins to recognize homeschooling familes. It makes me sad that they don't.
Mr. Dudek disagrees.
“The ‘schuhlpflicht’—the laws that require school attendance—are on the books in the German states,” he explained, “and have been traced back to the ‘Reichsculpflicht Gesetz’ [federal compulsory attendance laws] which was passed in 1938. Except for the removal of references to the Nazi party, these laws are identical or substantially the same as the laws passed by Hitler’s government, criminalizing parents who keep their children home for school.”
The Dudeks feel that homeschooling their children is the right thing to do and are determined resist what they consider unjust laws barring them from home education.
“The judge gave me an opportunity to discuss my reasons for homeschooling, for which I am grateful,” said Mr. Dudek. “But he told us that the constitutional court has already ruled on the issue of whether homeschooling is allowed. However, our lawyers were able to show evidence that the state had not honored their commitment not to prosecute us while our application to become a private school was pending.”
The judge suggested that the original fine could be reimposed, but prosecutor Mueller was adamant. “If a fine is the result of this trial, another appeal from the sentence will be made,” he is reported to have said.
Nevertheless, the Dudeks felt that the judge was being fair.
“He was very interested in this new piece of evidence, that was not in his file, about our private school application,” Mr. Dudek said. “This is why he continued the trial—he wants to hear more evidence from the previous prosecutor, who offered to suspend prosecution while we sought approval as a private school. Mr. Schop, the former prosecutor, is scheduled to testify next week. He was a very decent man, and we hope his testimony will help our case.”
The Dudeks appreciate the many people who have supported them with encouragement and prayer.
“God has given us the strength to see us through this,” said Mr. Dudek. “We were grateful, and gave thanks at the end that there was still more to come with another day of testimony. We really feel like this is a case of David and Goliath. The state says—‘Oh, you homeschoolers you talk about God and faith—but there is no one there who is going to see it through. The constitutional court has already decided all of that.’ But we have to obey our God. Now, it is our turn—it is hard and uncertain, but we know we can not disappoint the Lord and all those who are praying for us. So we will keep on.”
Other German homeschoolers see evidence of state officials trying to “stamp them out.” The Neubronners of Bremen had sued the city school authorities for the right to homeschool. After being denied they took their case to court. The Federal Administrative Court in Germany refused to overturn a lower court’s decision that held “[t]he general public has a justified interest in counteracting not only religiously or philosophically oriented parallel societies, but also certain educationally oriented groups whose obvious intention is to undermine the general obligation to attend school…and to cut themselves off from society.”
I found this online, not sure if it has anything to do with the story the OP posted or not but...
http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=53484
Quoting MomX04:
I found this online, not sure if it has anything to do with the story the OP posted or not but...
http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=53484
wait so are they saying they don't want homeschool because they thing it will encourage nazis?
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- rayzensun
on Nov. 27, 2009 at 12:07 PM