Marin County parents could face prosecuting for sending COVID-positive child to school

The Marin County District Attorney’s Office is reviewing whether to charge the parents who sent a COVID-positive child to school in Corte Madera.

County authorities referred the case to prosecutors for possible violation of public health laws. Authorities allege the parents knowingly sent their infected child and a sibling to school and failed to notify school officials about the infection.

The alleged breach of public health protocols led to the infection of eight children and 10-day quarantines of 75 students at Neil Cummins Elementary School over the Thanksgiving break.

“The case has been referred to law enforcement and the District Attorney’s office for review and action for failure to comply with the local isolation and quarantine order under California Health and Safety Code § 120295,” Laine Hendricks, a county spokesperson, said in an email. “We do not anticipate a final decision until after the holiday season.”

A spokesperson for District Attorney Lori Frugoli said the matter was under review Tuesday but declined to release additional details.

None of the children became seriously ill, but the incident prompted many hours of testing and cancellations of holiday travel plans.

Dr. Matt Willis, the county’s public health officer, said the parents declined to follow orders to keep their infected child home for 10 days, and also refused to tell public health specialists what school the child attended. Instead, they sent the child and a sibling to school for seven days, and failed to notify the school about the COVID-19 infection, Willis said.

They also failed to respond to any followup calls from the county public health staff, forcing the county to spend days tracking down the school, and prolonging the virus exposure time, Willis said.

Willis said the actions violated both the Marin County Student & Family Handbook on COVID-19 Safety and Marin County’s Isolation and Quarantine Public Health Order. The order and handbook require a 10-day home quarantine for COVID-19-positive cases.

Violations could result in a fine or criminal prosecution as a misdemeanor, Willis said.

The parents, whose names authorities have not released, have complied with the district’s “corrective action,” which included “reporting to required agencies, such as public health and law enforcement,” said Brett Geithman, superintendent of the Larkspur-Corte Madera School District.

“We have provided them with all necessary information regarding this case,” Geithman said Tuesday. “Next steps are in the hands of the district attorney.”

Geithman said the parents also sent an apology letter to Geithman and Neil Cummins principal Kyle Shaw. They have not offered an explanation for their actions other than to say that they initially didn’t understand the COVID-19 protocols, Geithman said.

According to Geithman, issues such as a language barrier or economic hardship were not factors in the case.

The parents apologized “for the disruption of school operations and all the inconvenience caused by our actions,” according to a copy of the letter, which had the parents’ names redacted.

“It was a result of a very bad judgement on our part and will never happen again,” the letter said. “We want to assure you that we did not mean to cause this kind of trouble and clearly misjudged the circumstances.”

The parents also offered to talk to the child’s teachers, but “we are also not sure if it is appropriate to have a conversation with our teachers at this moment, or it’s better to delay it until a later time. Would appreciate your guidance on this.”

The incident is the second time a COVID-19 outbreak involving a Marin school has received widespread attention. Earlier this year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published a report on the county’s handling of a 2020 outbreak at Our Lady of Loretto School in Novato.