The sudden reopening of the case, which she said was administratively closed over a decade ago, has affected nearly every aspect of her life, including her job.\u00a0Valladares said her employer gave her a choice after learning she could be required to leave for court proceedings or potentially be detained: resign now or risk being fired and barred from working for the company again.\u00a0\u201cThey told me that if I were to get detained and I couldn\u2019t contact my job, it would be considered job abandonment, so ultimately if that happened, I wouldn\u2019t be eligible for rehire,\u201d she said. \u201cHowever, if I resigned, I could be eligible for rehire one day and focus on fighting my case.\u201d<\/p>\n
She has since received food assistance and legal support from NorCal Resist, a Sacramento-based immigrant advocacy and mutual aid organization. NorCal Resist Program Director Giselle Garcia said a weeks-long battle to get the case moved to California, which included garnering support from Sacramento Congresswoman Doris Matsui, finally paid off. A second motion to change venue was accepted by the Atlanta court last month.\u00a0But Garcia says that doesn\u2019t mean Valladares\u2019 life is back on track.\u00a0\u201cShe lost a job that she worked very hard to get and to thrive in, she\u2019s facing housing insecurity,\u201d Garcia stressed. \u201cShe\u2019s still going to be forced to engage in this procedure that is quite frankly not a fair one. The odds are always stacked against the respondent.\u201d<\/p>\n
Valladares now has to wait for the Sacramento immigration court to issue a new hearing date.\u00a0Legal experts and immigration attorneys say it\u2019s difficult to know exactly how many people are in similar situations as Valladares because data from immigration courts is often delayed.<\/p>\n
The U.S. Department of Education is investigating how the Los Angeles Unified School District responds to educators accused of sexual misconduct with students.<\/p>\n
The department accuses the district of maintaining a policy that \u201cautomatically\u201d reassigns teachers to other schools when they are accused of sexual misconduct with students and cites a\u00a02024 agreement with the teachers union<\/a>.<\/p>\n A Los Angeles Unified spokesperson wrote in a statement that it\u2019s \u201cnot true\u201d that staff being investigated for sexual misconduct are reassigned to other school sites. \u201c\u2018Reassignment\u2019 typically means an employee is directed to remain at home and away from students and schools during an investigation,\u201d the spokesperson wrote.\u00a0United Teachers Los Angeles called the DOE\u2019s accusations a \u201cfundamental misunderstanding\u201d of the district\u2019s reassignment policy.\u00a0\u201c[Employees] are not reassigned to another classroom or to any other setting where they would interact with students,\u201d read a statement provided by the union. \u201cThis policy protects both students and staff and creates conditions for a thorough and appropriate investigation of allegations.\u201d<\/p>\n The federal investigation, overseen by the department\u2019s Office for Civil Rights, will assess whether the district\u2019s policy violates Title IX, a law that\u00a0prohibits sex-based discrimination in federally funded education programs<\/a>.\u00a0Kimberly Richey, the assistant secretary for civil rights, wrote in\u00a0a statement<\/a> that Title IX requires schools to address claims of sexual misconduct in a \u201ctimely manner.\u201d\u00a0\u201cIt is unconscionable that the district would simply ignore Title IX\u2019s procedural requirements to protect teachers who cause life-changing harm to their kids,\u201d Richey wrote. \u201cThe Trump administration will always fight to uphold the law, protect the safety of all students and restore common sense to our schools.\u201d<\/p>\n LAUSD protocol related to employee misconduct says administrators must remove accused employees from their classroom or worksite whenever there is a risk to the safety of students or staff.\u00a0The\u00a0110-page protocol document<\/a> also lists several other requirements for allegations related to sexual misconduct, including contacting law enforcement and the agencies that license teachers.\u00a0\u201cLos Angeles Unified takes all allegations of sexual misconduct and harassment with the utmost seriousness,\u201d a spokesperson wrote in a statement. \u201cOur primary responsibility is to ensure the safety, dignity and well-being of every student and staff member in our care.\u201d The statement also said the district follows Title IX procedures and continuously reviews its policies, training and reporting systems.<\/p>\n Newsom calls on election officials to count ballots faster\u00a0<\/p>\n