Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Clovis Unified Mourns Passing of Former Superintendent Terry Bradley

7 hours ago

Clovis At-Risk Missing Person Found Dead in Fresno Canal

7 hours ago

DOJ Asks California Sheriffs for Names of Inmates Who Aren’t Citizens

8 hours ago

Israel Agrees to Allow Syrian Troops Limited Access to Sweida

9 hours ago

Border Patrol Agents Raid a Home Depot in Northern California

9 hours ago

Man Admits to Killing Missing Bass Lake Resident, Madera County Authorities Say

1 day ago

Trump Diagnosed With Vein Condition Causing Leg Swelling, White House Says

1 day ago

US Seeks One-Day Sentence for Police Officer Convicted in Breonna Taylor Case

1 day ago

Manhattan Prosecutor Who Handled Epstein Cases Is Fired

1 day ago
Trustee Calls on DA to Investigate Fresno Schools Chief, Board Members
NANCY WEBSITE HEADSHOT 1
By Nancy Price, Multimedia Journalist
Published 4 years ago on
August 30, 2021

Share

Fresno Unified Trustee Terry Slatic is accusing Superintendent Bob Nelson and fellow School Board members of multiple violations of the state Education Code that he says requires districts to notify school staff when a student with a history of violence is transferred to a new school.

In a news release Monday, the Bullard High Area trustee said he has filed a complaint with the Public Integrity Unit of the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office, “demanding that Fresno Unified School District Superintendent Bob Nelson and School Board members be held accountable for the years of individual violations of California Education Code Section 49079.”

Later Monday, the district issued a news release saying it has been in full compliance with the law.

Slatic said he has spoken numerous times with Nelson in private as well as in front of the other trustees about the alleged violations, but no action was taken to follow the campus safety law. He told GV Wire that the district violates the law “hundreds” of times weekly.

Persons found guilty of violating Section 49079, a misdemeanor, could be sentenced to six months in county jail and fined $1,000 for each offense, Slatic said.

Too Hard to Comply

Slatic said Nelson has acknowledged privately to him that the district is violating the law but said it’s too hard to comply.

“If the superintendent does not want to do his job, and the board doesn’t want to make him … Mrs. Smittcamp can get a shot at it,” he said, referring to District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp.

Nelson and board president Valerie Davis were not immediately available for comment Monday. District spokeswoman Vanessa Ramirez said a statement is expected later Monday afternoon.

Later Monday, the district sent out a statement denying that Nelson and the board have violated notification procedures in section 49079.

When Slatic raised the issue two years ago, the district detailed in a board communication how the district is complying with the law. The district’s compliance is also spelled out in the collective bargaining agreement with the Fresno Teachers Association.

The district said Slatic violated another board bylaw by using district letterhead for his media release Monday without the approval of Davis as board president and without specifying that the news release was his opinion and did not reflect the viewpoint of the board.

Jerry Stanley, spokesman for the District Attorney’s Office, confirmed that the Public Integrity Unit is reviewing the matter and gathering more information.

Slatic said he sent the complaint to the DA’s office on Wednesday, the same day his filibuster shut down the School Board meeting. He said he was forced to speak nonstop because his fellow trustees have limited the time he gets to meet with Nelson and review issues.

The board censured Slatic in August 2019 for a series of incidents earlier that year involving Bullard students, staff, and an Army recruiter. The trustees publicly renewed the censure in 2020, and then quietly lifted it in a letter sent to Slatic this month. But Davis said last week that after Slatic’s refusal to yield the floor at Wednesday’s meeting and continuing to speak — even after his mic was turned off — the censure committee may review his behavior and consider taking action.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Trump Sues Wall Street Journal Over Epstein Report, Seeks $10 Billion

DON'T MISS

Fresno Man Arrested for Home Invasion, Groping Sleeping Woman

DON'T MISS

Who is the Future US Attorney for Fresno? Two Big Names Say They’re Not Interested

DON'T MISS

Fresno Firefighters Rescue Girl Trapped in Chimney

DON'T MISS

Rubio Says 10 Americans Detained in Venezuela Have Been Released

DON'T MISS

US Firms to Develop Syria Energy Masterplan After Trump Lifts Sanctions

DON'T MISS

More than Severance: Fresno Unified Wants to Give $162K to Nikki Henry to End ‘Dispute’

DON'T MISS

Fresno Police Arrest Man Accused of Chasing, Shooting Victim

DON'T MISS

What You Need to Know About Trump, Epstein and the MAGA Controversy

DON'T MISS

How Many Millions of Dollars Will Fresno Get From Airport Car Rentals?

UP NEXT

Clovis Unified Mourns Passing of Former Superintendent Terry Bradley

UP NEXT

Trump Diagnosed With Vein Condition Causing Leg Swelling, White House Says

UP NEXT

Connie Francis, Whose Ballads Dominated ’60s Pop Music, Dies at 87

UP NEXT

FDA Approves Juul’s Tobacco and Menthol E-Cigarettes

UP NEXT

7.3 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Off Alaska Coast. No Danger to California

UP NEXT

Age Is Just a Number: 80-Year-Old Conquers Death Valley to Mt. Whitney Ultramarathon

UP NEXT

Is US Democracy Threatened? Majority of Californians, Including Republicans, Say Yes

UP NEXT

US Senator Seeks Safety Reforms After Fatal Collision Between Army Helicopter, Regional Jet

UP NEXT

PBS and NPR Mount Last-Ditch Fight to Save Federal Funding

UP NEXT

Heinous, Heartbreaking, Expensive: California Schools Face Avalanche of Sex Abuse Claims

Nancy Price,
Multimedia Journalist
Nancy Price is a multimedia journalist for GV Wire. A longtime reporter and editor who has worked for newspapers in California, Florida, Alaska, Illinois and Kansas, Nancy joined GV Wire in July 2019. She previously worked as an assistant metro editor for 13 years at The Fresno Bee. Nancy earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in journalism at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. Her hobbies include singing with the Fresno Master Chorale and volunteering with Fresno Filmworks. You can reach Nancy at 559-492-4087 or Send an Email

Fresno Firefighters Rescue Girl Trapped in Chimney

2 hours ago

Rubio Says 10 Americans Detained in Venezuela Have Been Released

3 hours ago

US Firms to Develop Syria Energy Masterplan After Trump Lifts Sanctions

4 hours ago

More than Severance: Fresno Unified Wants to Give $162K to Nikki Henry to End ‘Dispute’

4 hours ago

Fresno Police Arrest Man Accused of Chasing, Shooting Victim

4 hours ago

What You Need to Know About Trump, Epstein and the MAGA Controversy

5 hours ago

How Many Millions of Dollars Will Fresno Get From Airport Car Rentals?

5 hours ago

DOJ Wants California Jail Data on Noncitizen Inmates. Fresno Sheriff Reviews Request.

5 hours ago

Fresno Police Arrest Three in Drug Raid, Recover Firearms and Narcotics

6 hours ago

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Lavisha Denise Beard

6 hours ago

Trump Sues Wall Street Journal Over Epstein Report, Seeks $10 Billion

President Donald Trump sued the Wall Street Journal and its owners including Rupert Murdoch on Friday, seeking at least $10 billion in damag...

10 minutes ago

President Donald Trump speaks during the White House Faith Office Luncheon at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 14, 2025. (Reuters/Nathan Howard)
10 minutes ago

Trump Sues Wall Street Journal Over Epstein Report, Seeks $10 Billion

A Fresno man has been arrested on felony charges after allegedly breaking into a home, groping a sleeping woman, and fleeing with stolen items. (Fresno County SO)
11 minutes ago

Fresno Man Arrested for Home Invasion, Groping Sleeping Woman

1 hour ago

Who is the Future US Attorney for Fresno? Two Big Names Say They’re Not Interested

A juvenile girl was rescued early Thursday, July 17, 2025, after becoming trapped inside a chimney at a Fresno home and was hospitalized with minor injuries. (Fresno FD)
2 hours ago

Fresno Firefighters Rescue Girl Trapped in Chimney

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio attends a nuclear cooperation Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signing ceremony with Bahrain's Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani (not pictured), at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 16, 2025. (Reuters/Umit Bektas)
3 hours ago

Rubio Says 10 Americans Detained in Venezuela Have Been Released

Men work at a makeshift oil refinery site in Marchmarin town, southern countryside of Idlib, Syria December 16, 2015. (Reuters File)
4 hours ago

US Firms to Develop Syria Energy Masterplan After Trump Lifts Sanctions

4 hours ago

More than Severance: Fresno Unified Wants to Give $162K to Nikki Henry to End ‘Dispute’

Julian Nathaniel Benavidez was arrested in connection with a July 6 shooting in northwest Fresno that left one person injured. (Fresno PD)
4 hours ago

Fresno Police Arrest Man Accused of Chasing, Shooting Victim

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend