Zero tolerance for 'Zero Tolerance'

Regarding "It's time for action against absurd policies in public education," a letter to the editor by Dan Goldberg in the Jan. 3 T.O. Acorn , what troubles me most about "Zero Tolerance" expulsion of even innocently harmless middle school students, like Weston Goldberg, is that Principal Eleanor Love--or any other California principal--can call in the police, bring criminal charges, expel children, tarnish a child's school record and force parents to spend considerable sums to hire attorneys in defense of their children--all this without being the least bit accountable.

Presidents can be impeached. Supreme Court justices can be impeached. Governors, senators, congressmen and sheriffs can all be recalled, but a principal cannot be removed from office by any administrative action of parents. Why is that?

Why are taxpayer-supported principals somehow immune from taxpayer accountability, unlike everybody else?

I don't know the answer, but I do know that either one of my twins can just as easily be yanked out of school like Weston, and that's why I'm angry. And that's why we need to modify the California code in Sacramento that gives such wanton power to principals.

I urge parents in the Conejo Valley to get together and sound off loud enough to push through sensible changes in the California code requiring principals to use some judgment in evaluating intent, self-defense and prior history of behavior before they call in the police.

And if we have to go through all the bother and all the work to bring about a change of law, let's put some teeth in it: A principal can be removed from office if 70 percent of the parents demand their removal in a vote of no confidence.

And while we're at it, let's defeat the reelection bids this year of the two school board members, Dorothy Beaubien and Dolores Didio, who idly stood by and let Weston Goldberg be expelled.
John Barchilon
Thousand Oaks