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Church & State Issues/florida school attendance law

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Expert: - 4/29/2009


Question
as Mennonites in the state of Florida our question is: can the state of Fl. compel us to send our children to our church operated and funded parochial school past the 9th grade or 15 yrs. of age.  Does wisconsin v. Yoder apply in such a case?

Answer
Hi John,

Please keep in mind that I am not allowed to provide specific legal advice in this forum.  However, much of the reasoning that upheld the right of the Amish in Wisconsin v. Yoder was gutted by a 1990 decision called Employment Division v. Smith.  There, the Court held that any reasonably neutral law that had an impact on religious practices would be upheld, without using any balancing test.  In light of that Smith case, I would be surprised if the state could not mandate additional schooling today.

- Mike  

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Michael Troy

Expertise

I can answer any question relating to freedom of religion or the Establishment Clause. My specialties involve religious discrimination by government in allocation of benefits, usually in the educational area. I cannot give specific legal advice on specific cases you may have.

Experience

I have participated in the litigation of a number of religious freedom/Establishment Clause cases, including Rosenberger v. Univ. of Virginia and Columbia Union College v. Clarke.

Organizations
Former Attorney with Center for Individual Rights

Publications
Washington Post
Washington Times

Education/Credentials
JD from Univ. of Michigan Law School

Awards and Honors
Truman Scholar

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