No. 25-143

Rebecca Hartzell v. Marana Unified School District, et al.

Lower Court: Ninth Circuit
Docketed: 2025-08-06
Status: Denied
Type: Paid
Tags: circuit-split constitutional-education fourteenth-amendment government-employee-liability parental-rights school-choice
Key Terms:
SocialSecurity FirstAmendment DueProcess JusticiabilityDoctri
Latest Conference: 2025-10-10
Question Presented (AI Summary)

Whether the fundamental constitutional right of parents to control their children's education extends beyond school selection and continues within public school settings

Question Presented (OCR Extract)

This Court has held for over a century that the Fourteenth Amendment protects the right of parents to control and direct the education of their children. But other than protecting the decision to choose private educational options for a child, the Court has not determined what it means to “direct” the education of one’s child. Importantly, this Court has yet to answer directly whether the right to educate one’s child is fulfilled by the choosing of a public or private school—a question over which the circuit courts are split. This case therefore presents two interconnected questions, including one involving a circuit split: 1. Whether the fundamental constitutional right of parents to control their children’s education is limited to the right to select a school—as the court below held—or whether parents continue exercising that right even once they have chosen to send their child to a public school, as the Third Circuit has held. 2. Whether there should be a more generalized clearly established requirement for government employees who have plenty of time to reflect on the constitutionality of their actions than the clearly established requirement that applies to cases involving law enforcement officers making split-second, life-or-death decisions.

Docket Entries

2025-10-14
Petition DENIED.
2025-09-24
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 10/10/2025.
2025-09-17
Reply of Rebecca Hartzell submitted.
2025-09-17
Reply of petitioner Rebecca Hartzell filed.
2025-09-05
Brief of Marana Unified School District and Andrea Divijak in opposition submitted.
2025-09-05
Brief of respondents Marana Unified School District, et al. in opposition filed.
2025-08-22
Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including October 6, 2025.
2025-08-13
Motion to extend the time to file a response from September 5, 2025 to October 6, 2025, submitted to The Clerk.
2025-08-01
Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due September 5, 2025)
2025-05-20
Application (24A1110) granted by Justice Kagan extending the time to file until August 1, 2025.
2025-05-15
Application (24A1110) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from June 3, 2025 to August 1, 2025, submitted to Justice Kagan.

Attorneys

Marana Unified School District and Andrea Divijak
Gary Frank UrmanDeConcini McDonald Yetwin & Lacy, Respondent
Gary Frank UrmanDeConcini McDonald Yetwin & Lacy, Respondent
Rebecca Hartzell
Adam Christopher SheltonGoldwater lnstitute, Petitioner
Adam Christopher SheltonGoldwater lnstitute, Petitioner