Schools

District 135 Taking Residency Fraud to Civil Court

Orland School District 135 is taking Paul Gutierrez back to court for money to cover the time his daughter studied at Orland Junior High.

District 135 is looking to get some back pay for the time Paul Gutierrez’s daughter attended Orland Junior High.

 A Cook County judge ruled on Dec. 21 that Paul D. Gutierrez presented a false lease from an Orland Park home to send his daughter to Orland Junior High for the 2009-10 school year. The Blue Island resident was charged with violation of school code, a misdemeanor, and sentenced to six months probation and fined $585.

After the ruling, District 135 officials said there was a possibility of filing a civil suit against Gutierrez to recoup per-capita costs for his daughter attending school while out of the district. Wednesday afternoon, the suit was filed, District 135 Asst. Superintendent for Business Services John Reiniche wrote in an email Wednesday.

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The district seeks $24,208.03 in damages from Gutierrez for his daughter’s attendance during two school years between fall 2008 and spring 2010, according to court documents.

Attorney Jeff Aprati, who represented Gutierrez in the criminal court case, said he wasn’t aware of the civil filing. Aprati questioned the need to take more money from Gutierrez if his daughter’s presence didn’t result in a shortfall for the school.

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“Did the school have to make any cuts because of this?” Aprati said. “How’s the addition of one person damaging the school or costing them more money? They have to prove that money was lost. And since he paid taxes in Blue Island, where should that money go? It’s not like he didn’t pay taxes at all.”

Reiniche said the district offered opportunities for Gutierrez to admit the false residency, but he continued to deny it.

“We even offered to explain the residency laws in case he didn’t understand it,” Reiniche said. “We tried to work it all out at our level first. But he continued to defy us with these documents.”

Reiniche also noted that the per-capita cost is equal for any student who attends school from outside of the district, including students from families still in the process of moving.

“If someone moves in from out of district, and their house isn’t built yet, we would charge that same fee,” Reiniche said. “It’s evenly and consistently applied based on school code. It is important that the district protects its community and the interest of taxpayers.”


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