SPS Suing Vaping Company
Seattle Public Schools files lawsuit against vaping company Juul. From KOMO:
But we have a fairly active attorney general in the form of Bob Ferguson who has beat the Trump administration what? six times in court. Why not leave this to him and the State and the County?
I perceive this as some grandstanding on the part of the Superintendent.
Seattle Public Schools is suing Juul, alleging the vaping company has targeted teenagers.
“There is no doubt that vaping is reaching epidemic proportions among teenagers, and we can’t just sit by while our students suffer the effects of being targeted by Juul,” said Superintendent Denise Juneau.Really? This is what the district wants to spend money on in a big way. I definitely don't like vaping and there should be redoubled efforts around schools.
he district says that there was a 250% increase in the number of 10th graders who admitted to vaping between 2016 and 2018. It also notes that there has been an increase in vaping among students between 6th and 12th grades across the state.
The school district filed the lawsuit Thursday in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, though officials expect it will be consolidated into the multi-district case underway in San Francisco. Seattle schools have hired the law firm Keller Rohrback, which is also representing other public entities -- such as King County -- that are currently suing Juul.
But we have a fairly active attorney general in the form of Bob Ferguson who has beat the Trump administration what? six times in court. Why not leave this to him and the State and the County?
I perceive this as some grandstanding on the part of the Superintendent.
Comments
Flummoxed
"I perceive this as some grandstanding on the part of the Superintendent,"
NO.
The SPS School Board approved this, Chief Counsel Gregory Narver brought it to the President and the SPS Board.
Keller Rohrback LLP is working on a contingent percentage fee basis - no fees unless a recovery is made.
Why SPS is a party instead of relying on State & County? Because the damages, if any, will not flow back to SPS to hire additional nurses, and wrap-around services that are needed with the vaping epidemic.
Cordially,
Leslie Harris
President, District 6, SPS Board of Directors
leslie.harris@seattleschools.org
schoolboard@seattleschools.org
FNH
Geeze
--Pro Quo
FNH. Not a waste of resources. You may have posted prior to getting a chance to read Director Harris' post.
Melissa. It is short term money. But that's not the only point. It is addressing the long term problem of advertising to minors. I'm glad SPS stepped up to the plate on this one. It was a no brainer.
Geeze. People know that those furthest away from educational justice need rethinking regarding how best to enhance educational opportunities and outcomes. Your comment doesn't move forward that discussion, nor does it detract from the importance of the vaping problem. SPS can try to address more than one issue at a time.
Pro Quo. Conspiracy theories everywhere. We sue with lawyers. SPS needs to participate in this suit. That a director is also a lawyer does negate her ability or authority to approve law suits that need to move forward. If anything, she is perhaps better positioned to do so.
BLUE SKY
Pro Quo. Conspiracy theories everywhere. We sue with lawyers. SPS needs to participate in this suit. That a director is also a lawyer does NOT negate her ability or authority to approve law suits that need to move forward. If anything, she is perhaps better positioned to do so.
BLUE SKY
Director Harris is not a lawyer; she's a paralegal.
How much does representation in a lawsuit that drags on for "a long time" cost us???
Is this legal? This sounds a like PR stunt.
I just want the district to focus their vision and reach on education. (And how about TRANSPARENCY.) Nothing more. I feel like I'm going insane.
--Down the rabbit hole
HF
Whatever happened to the notion that schools should focus on educating kids?
Basics
Staff ARE needed to work on this, even if a law firm is doing the bulk of the work. You don't just send a simple email to lawyer to file a suit. SPS Chief Counsel Gregory Narver, for example, was mentioned by name in Dir. Harris's post. SPS spokesperson Tim Robinson, was quoted in the article. I'm sure there are staff in the SPS legal dept who also worked on it, and Juneau was undoubtedly aware. There were likely admin people in various depts helping pull information, route materials, collaborate with the Board on approval, etc.
I didn't say SPS would "lose money," nor did I say it was a bad idea to sign on. There was a discussion about whether this was costing the district anything, and I simply pointed out that participation without "fee"s still involves costs (e.g., paid staff's time). One could argue quite reasonably that devoting staff resources to an unsuccessful effort does constitute "losing money."
Does everything need to be an argument or a game of "gotcha" these days, with people just jumping at the chance to criticize someone's reasonable post, even if they haven't read it carefully or understood it fully? It's so unfortunate.
HF
To clarify, my comment was in response to Geeze, who said: "Harris, the only epidemic you should be worrying about is why African American males are failing to graduate or graduating and only reading at 5th grade level. How about hiring a lawyer for that!"
My point was simply that SPS can tackle both problems at the same time.
BLUE SKY
Juneau is damned if she does, and damned if she doesn't. Had SPS not responded, the likes of me would have complained re her lack of leadership, as this is an issue of great public health import to students.
I'm giving credit where credit is due on this one. Kudos to SPS for joining this fight.
BLUE SKY
What about teacher strikes? They’re illegal and close schools down. Should we race for an injunction next time the pickets go up?
This is stupid.
Your sarcasm is misplaced - does nothing to advance your argument.
BLUE SKY
Fed Up
Also Fed Up
If disagreeing with others on this forum is inflammatory, then I am inflammatory.
I am NOT anti-white. I am not anti-HC. I am pro equity in education.
I am aware of the statistics on vaping. My kid is white, socio-economically privileged. My child fits the profile.
Vaping sucks regardless.
Fed Up
There is no educational justice for kids returning to schools where walk to math and differentiation does not exist. If the top 2% are in a racist program that, there is no difference in racial makeup if the district keeps it for the top 1%. This difference of 1 versus 2% is arbitrary.
Also Fed Up