"I was under the influence of marijuana," he tells the court.
"I want you to talk to Mr. Williams, the social service coordinator," says Judge Chavez. "I want to make certain there aren't any other issues we are not dealing with here."
Mark Graham
Dallas County has responded to the burgeoning truancy problem with a comprehensive enforcement program that uses both the carrot of social services with the stick of court sanctions. Pictured above is the stick. Below, Dallas County Commissioner Mike Cantrell has led the charge to remove truancy authority from the county's justices of the peace and vest it in specialized truancy courts under the control of the county commissioners.
Constable J. Anderson, top photo, helps keep order while interpreter Michelle Simmons, bottom photo, helps keep Spanish-speaking students and their parents informed. Middle photo: Judge Rey Chavez presides over the north truancy court, whose docket has been overwhelmed by its share of the nearly 25,000 to 35,000 cases that DISD expects to file each year.
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"Yes, sir."
"Next time you come back here, I am going to have you tested for drugs. If you test dirty, that's a violation of your court order."
Don Williams is a big, bald-headed man, a former parole officer who says this is the best job he's ever had. He is also a one-man referral agency, interviewing kids, their parents, administering a mini-assessment test and deciding the best match between truant and social services provider. He gets maybe 45 minutes to do this, and he does it at least 10 times a day. "When Dr. Bell came into my office, he wanted to know where the other 10 of me were," he says. He does recall Bobby Malone, though--agrees he's been having a hard time. "Basically, he is more mature than his mother," Williams says. "He is fundamentally a good kid. He even drove himself to boot camp."
Boot camp, anywhere from one to four Saturday sessions, is clearly the sanction of choice for those who continue to skip school. "It really gets their attention," Williams says.
It couldn't have done much, however, for Juan Rivas, a stout boxer who tells the judge he didn't need school because he is going to turn pro.
"I wouldn't count on that," cautions the judge.
"It's always in his head, judge," says his mother. "All he ever wants to do is train. He has many trophies."
Juan is 17, but reads far below his grade level. His mother says she was embarrassed, being a teacher herself.
A 17-year-old in ninth or 10th grade is so close to adulthood and so far from graduation, many of them figure it's easier to drop out. Chavez says that they (as well as pregnant students) are the hardest group to motivate. "I have no idea why you are being so stubborn," the judge tells Juan. "Without an education, you are working at McDonald's or working construction. And what if you hurt your back? You won't have the brains to help you out."
"I know I have got boxing skills, judge."
"What if you break your hand, then what happens?" says the judge. "For every Julio Cesar Chavez, there are hundreds who don't make it."
"Yes, sir."
"I am ordering all $300 of your fine and court costs due now," he says. "If you don't go to school, I will hold you in contempt and fine you another $500."
"Yes, sir."
"I am not going to let you be ignorant for the rest of your life."
The judge must have felt the same way about Bobby Malone, because he gives him the same punishment. Rather than lock him up, he ups his fine. He orders him to return to school immediately and return to court on April 3 for his latest in a series of second chances.
"I can do this," Bobby says later. "It's more of a hassle going to court than it is going to school."
If Cantrell gets his way, the Texas Legislature will give Dallas County commissioners the authority to appoint magistrates who will hear truancy cases for DISD as well as the other 14 school districts throughout the county. Although it's opposed by JPs who believe it is another attempt to legislate them out of existence, this legislation is part of Cantrell's master plan for a "truly comprehensive truancy system"--four or more courts within the county, all under the commissioners' control, that will track truants from the time they enter the system until the time they graduate, if they do. No longer will truants and the families who enable them be able to wander from school district to district, ditching school and dodging process. All cases will be processed from a centralized location; all districts will be able to file electronically with the courts. "If something is effective, we will use it," he says. "If it's not working, it will be changed."
If the case of Bobby Malone is any indication of effectiveness, the new truancy system still has its work cut out for it. On April 3, Bobby returned to truancy court and had eight new unexcused absences to defend.
He was depressed, he said, because he had fallen so far behind in school. What was the point of going when he had no hope of passing? Judge Chavez could have made that point by putting Bobby behind bars for a few days. Instead, he ordered that Bobby enter a "reconnection center," an alternative DISD program that can accelerate his learning through online instruction and enable him to make up for lost time. Chavez appears to understand that the true measure of whether truancy enforcement works is whether students such as Bobby make it to graduation day.
"I have two years of school left," Bobby says. "I hope I can make it. I just don't know if I can."
