Undaunted by rebukes from a federal judge and a key D.C. councilman, Attorney General Peter Nickles announced Wednesday he was expanding his war against special education lawyers.
Nickles has sued several lawyers who he says are wasting taxpayers’ time and money with “frivolous” special education due process lawsuits. He added lawyer Fatmata Barrie to the list, accusing her of wasting resources with a due process complaint on behalf of an 8-year-old with a speech problem.
And on Wednesday, Nickles appealed a previous loss in a similar federal lawsuit filed against another lawyer.
Both the appeals judge and Councilman Phil Mendelson, D-at large, accused the attorney general of trying to intimidate people victimized by a failing school system.
Years of trouble in the $300 million special ed system have turned due process litigation into a massive industry in the District. The city has more special ed due process cases than the 50 states combined.
