I'm with others as stated above. The parents seem to be shaking the government money tree. I am 125% in favour of service dogs. I am also 125% certain that there are children out there with a near "panic-fear" of dogs. I used to be one of them.

So while it is lamentable for the son, who is caught in the middle of this, one has to wonder; if the partens were so all fired up to "help" their son, why initiate any lawsuit seeking monetary compensation?

-Jim

I'd have loved some monetary compensation for my school's failings - straight into the college fund!

But on a serious note, I can understand where each party is coming from...although like others, I'm not sure that being apart from the dog for 6 hours would destroy their relationship...but what do I know?

Maybe the kid should shop around for a new school...or might there be a school for the deaf and hard of hearing nearby? I know there are several such schools in my city. If I were in his position, I wouldn't want to attend the school even if I did win the case - too awkward.

Different Laws for different countries, When we moved to Belgium at 5.30 one freezing cold morning in Feb 2004, My brother and myself was met by a Water soaked Floor in the Kitchen, the door off the Kitchen leads out to the Garage and there the Roof was Leaking, Later that day when it got Light after patching up the leaks all was well until it rained again and in came the Water. After once again patching the roof it finally got to the stage where i could no longer patch it up, So i had to get a Roofer to renew it, at a cost i could not afford but had to find the Cash
Job done and we breathed a sigh of relief, until it rained
To cut a long story short the Roofer came back nine times in the two years to repair the new Roof, in the end he could not stop the leaks so he ingnored my cry of Help,So after wtiting him a letter to tell him if he did not stop all leaks i would see a Lawyer, He again ingnored me and the letter so i contacted my Lawyer, He wrote to them but the Roofer said he would come one more time and if it still leaked after, it was my doing
I off course did not agree so my lawyer got a Court order for a Specalist to inspect the Roof I had to pay for this Specalist at the time, I told my Lawyer that the Roofer was to pay all my costs this was said right from the start, Any how, the Roofer got a friend to help him with the Roof and now it is water tight 3 hours work is all it took to do the job
I was Mad but to this day over two years of Being played around with The Roofer will not pay the Specalists Fee. He is not liable in Belgium to pay my Lawyers costs, i will have to pay them that is the law over here Certainly not a right law
I may as well have paid another Roofer to have put his work right, So its not easy to get money out of someone over here in Belgium, even if its due,

"The Caves believe John and Simba must bond around the clock so that the dog can work most effectively as an assistance dog, trained to alert a deaf child to potential danger, such as fire or smoke alarms and cars."

I am a teacher and have had a deaf student in my H.S. class. She did not require a service dog of any kind. And her hearing loss was 100%. Not really sure how the dog would be of service. The alarms utilized in the schools are all equipped with flashing lights, and last time I checked I did not see any cars driving through the halls. I do agree that there are times when a service dog is called for, but do not think this is one of those times.

I think we need to put things in perspective - I would much rather have my children go to school with a dog than with the guns drugs and predators we have in our society -

I agree with Patrick. If this child is in need of special services the school can provide a more human, less distracting assistant for him. His teacher, parents and school board are supposed to discuss any special assistance he may need before attending school. If he's so disabled that he absolutely has to have that dog with him, there are schools for that as well but it sounds like the parents are only thinking of their situation without regard for any peripheral circumstances.

My wife disagrees (Special Ed teacher) and is telling me I am wrong. She worked in a school in MD where a child had a dog to retrieve things for him. She also says the dog is supposed to remain with the participant 24/7. The school educated all of the students, especially his class, on the purpose of this technology. If the transition between periods was too busy, he was allowed to transition 2 minutes early to avoid problems. She spewed off several other things that went by so fast I kinda stepped out of my head for a second until she was done.

That's it! She's sleeping on the couch.