LEGAL/LEGISLATIVE UPDATES
ACROSS THE STATES

MICHIGAN

Father arrested

In the third week of October, the Stutzman family pulled their child out of public school. During a subsequent teacher's visit, they explained that they had decided to homeschool, pursuant to Michigan law.

Michigan allows homeschooling if a parent simply teaches certain subjects at home with an organized curriculum. There is no requirement for notification or curriculum approval.

Within a month, the family received a letter indicating they needed to put their child in public school. A truant officer came to visit and once again the family explained that they were homeschooling.

To Mr. Stutzman's surprise, on the day after Christmas, he was arrested, fingerprinted and photographed for the "crime" of homeschooling. Fortunately, he was able to get out on bail. A hearing was set for January 23.

Home School Legal Defense Association secured attorney Dave Kallman to represent Mr. Stutzman at the hearing. It turned out that the prosecutor was not even familiar with the homeschool law and thought that a teaching parent had to be certified. David Kallman was able to convince the prosecutor to withdraw the charges before Mr. Stutzman even had to appear before the judge.

Commenting on the experience, Mr. Stutzman said, "I was treated like a common criminal and even had my name in the papers," causing great consternation to his relatives that he was engaging in some illegal activity by homeschooling.

We are thankful that this situation was resolved favorably and will continue to defend our member families in Michigan.

— Christopher J. Klicka