Attorneys in a case between the Hamilton County Department of Education and the parents of a student with Down syndrome concluded their civil trial Tuesday afternoon.
Now, after six days of testimony, the lawyers on both sides – Scott Bennett for the school boards, Justin Gilbert for the family – will have until Feb. 12 to file motions arguing why their side presented the better case. U.S. District Court Judge Curtis Collier will issue a ruling at a later date.
The trial revolves around Luka Hyde, a former Normal Park Museum Magnet student who has Down syndrome. At the end of his second-grade school year in 2013, Hamilton County teachers and administrators decided he needed to move to a Red Bank Elementary Comprehensive Development Classroom, where he would spend more time with other “intensive needs” students.
Luka’s parents, Deborah and Greg, say this decision would have jeopardized his future because he will live alongside the general population as an adult. He needs to be educated alongside that general population, they say. The decision to move him to Red Bank Elementary CDC is “illegal segregation,” according to their lawsuit.
The Hydes have moved Luka to The Montessori School, a private school. They say he is thriving there. But throughout the federal trial this month, Hamilton County administrators have argued their decision to move Luka to Red Bank CDC would have provided him with the best possible education.