State Supreme Court Will Not Hear Clifton Elementary Case

The Supreme Court of Virginia will not be hearing the case of Clifton parents who sued the Fairfax County School Board over its decision to close Clifton Elementary.

The school board’s press office sent out a notification about the ruling on Friday. Clifton Elementary School parents filed suit last year after the school board said it would be closing the school due to the cost for the school's renovations, among other reasons.

The Chief Judge of the Fairfax County Circuit Court, Dennis J. Smith, ruled in favor of the school board in December of last year.

Smith stated that the board's decision to close the school, although contradicted by "substantial evidence" and "very likely wrong for the Clifton community," was not arbitrary and capricious.

Clifton parents applied for an appeal of Smith’s decision to the state Supreme Court in March.

According to court records, the application for appeal was refused on June 2.

There is still, however, a second ongoing lawsuit involving the closing of the school. Clifton resident Jill Hill filed a suit which stated that the school board violated Freedom of Information Act laws in the handling of the case.

“The FOIA and open meetings law case was always the stronger case,” said Elizabeth Schultz, a Clifton Elementary School parent who is also running for a school board seat this year. “The Circuit Court case remains outstanding and is a pretty significant case.”