California OAH special education order · December 7, 2022
Order Granting Request for Official Notice of the Due Process Hearing Request and Decision in Office of Administrative Hearings Case Number 2022080223
OAH Case No. 2022110728 · ALJ Cynthia Fritz
OAH granted Sacramento City Unified's unopposed request to take official notice of the complaint and decision in a prior case, because both are public records in OAH's file and may be relevant.
This case went to decision
Sacramento City Unified School District v. Student: Sacramento City Unified may move a tenth grader to a nonpublic school for up to 45 school days after showing substantial risk of injury. (2022)
This case went to decision
Sacramento City Unified School District v. Student: Sacramento City Unified may return a tenth grader to Point Quest nonpublic school for up to 45 more school days. (2023)
Summary
Sacramento City Unified School District filed a new due process complaint against Student. It asked OAH to take judicial notice, treated as official notice, of its August 2022 complaint and OAH's September 22, 2022 decision in an earlier case, arguing the new matter continues the facts proven there. Student did not respond. The ALJ granted the request because the prior complaint and decision are part of OAH's administrative file, the decision is a public record, and both may be relevant.
Why it matters
A district can bring findings from an earlier OAH decision into a new case through official notice. Families who do not respond to such a request lose the chance to argue over how far the prior decision should shape the new hearing.
Key authority cited
- Gov. Code § 11515
- Board of Education of City of Los Angeles v. Watson (1966) 63 Cal.2d 829
- McPheeters v. Board of Medical Examiners (1946) 74 Cal.App.2d 46
Topics
Full text of the order
Published text of the OAH order. Page headers and numbers from the original PDF have been dropped.
BEFORE THE
OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS
STATE OF CALIFORNIA
IN THE MATTER OF:
SACRAMENTO CITY UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT,
v.
PARENTS ON BEHALF OF STUDENT.
OAH CASE NUMBER 2022110728
ORDER GRANTING REQUEST FOR OFFICIAL NOTICE OF
THE DUE PROCESS HEARING REQUEST AND DECISION IN
OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS CASE NUMBER
2022080223.
DECEMBER 7, 2022
On August 8, 2022, Sacramento City Unified School District filed a request for due process hearing with the Office of Administrative Hearings, called OAH, naming Student, in case number 2022080223. On September 22, 2022, the Office of Administrative Hearings issued a decision in case number 2022080223.
On November 28, 2022, Sacramento City Unified School District filed with OAH, a request for due process hearing naming Student. On November 30, 2022, Sacramento City Unified School District filed a request for judicial notice. Sacramento City Unified School District’s request is interpreted as a request for official notice. Student failed to file a response to the request.
Government Code section 11515 provides that “official notice can be taken, either before or after submission of the case for decision …of any fact which may be judicially noticed by the courts of the state.” Courts have traditionally taken judicial notice of public records public records issued by public agencies. (Board of Education of City of Los Angeles v. Watson (1966) 63 Cal. 2d 829, 836, fn.3; McPheeters v. Board of Medical Examiners of State (1946) 74 Cal. App. 2d 46, 48.)
Sacramento City Unified School District requests that OAH take official notice of the due process hearing request and final decision in OAH case number 2022080223 issued on September 22, 2022, because the facts and basis of the present matter are a continuation of those proven in OAH case number 2022080223.
The due process hearing request and decision in OAH case number 2022080223 are part of the OAH administrative file, the decision is public record, and both documents may have relevance to this case. Thus, Sacramento City Unified School District’s request for official notice is granted.
ORDER
1. Sacramento City Unified School District’s request for official notice of the due
process hearing request, filed August 8, 2022, in OAH case number 2022080223 is granted.
2. Sacramento City Unified School District’s request for official notice of the
decision, dated September 22, 2022, in OAH case number 2022080223 is granted.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
Cynthia Fritz Administrative Law Judge Office of Administrative Hearings