Success Academy Cobble Hill Lawsuit Dismissed

A lawsuit brought against the Success Academy Cobble Hill charter school by local parents has been thrown out, according to an announcement on Gotham Schools that ran Wednesday evening.

In February, a group of District 15 parents, legal advocates and other supporters from the community held a press conference outside of , between Court and Smith Streets, that of Success Academy Charter Schools Eva Moskowitz, Brooklyn Success Academy III Trustees and the DOE over the alleged unlawful authorization of the charter school.

While the judge "agreed that the school could have done more to solicit community feedback" Gotham Schools wrote, "The State Supreme Court justice, Peter Moulton, ruled that the school’s move from District 13 to District 15 had not violated state law."

Immediate calls to Advocates for Justice, which represented the parents in the lawsuit did not immediately yield a response. Carroll Gardens Patch was, however, able to reach one of the parents involved.

"Unfortunately, I don't think any of us expected a different outcome," said Jackie Johnson, who has been a staunch opponent of the charter school's co-location at 284 Baltic Street.

"Eva Moskowitz spent 1.7 million dollars on advertising and PR to reach the middle class families of BOCOCA, all the while ignoring the families of the needy students she put on her application she was here to serve," Johnson wrote in a statement to Patch. "In fact, it is the needy students who will now be deprived of a quality education as a result of her co-location. For the privilege, they will also have to pay for her building costs.

In fact, construction at the building has already been underway to prepare the site for the new addition.

"God knows how much more money she spent on legal fees," Johnson continued. "We are facing down a horrible injustice with seemingly endless financial resources and political connections. But that's not a reason not to fight. In fact, lawsuits like this do serve a purpose. They enlighten the voting public about the corporate and political agenda of Moskowitz and others like her to profit from the privatization of public schools." 

President of CEC-15 Jim Devor echoed those sentiments in a passionate e-mail to Carroll Gardens Patch.

"According to the judge, the case was barred by the statute of limitations," wrote Devor. "He rationalizes this by asserting the "cause of action" accrued when the Regents approved the charter in September, 2011 - i.e., BEFORE ANY PUBLIC DISCLOSURE (never mind any actual determination) THAT THE CHARTER SCHOOL WOULD BE LOCATED IN DISTRICT 15. Ironically, had the lawsuit been brought before the PEP vote, then it would have undoubtedly been dismissed as premature. This is nothing less than outright judicial sophistry." 

Devor also asserted that "the claim that the decision to locate Brooklyn Success 3 in D15 due to limited space in D13 or D14 is also manifestly spurious," going on to add, "Indeed, Brooklyn Success has already filed an application for still another Charter School in D13. Their (apparently legally validated) dishonesty and contempt for our community (shared with the NYC DoE) is simply repugnant."   

Moskowitz herself deemed the suit “an unnecessary distraction,” according to a statement in Gotham Schools. “We’re excited to get back to the important work of providing NYC with a joyful and rigorous learning environment, training our teachers and opening our doors in August,” she said.

A lawsuit brought against a Success Academy Williamsburg school by Advocates for Justice is still pending.