DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. -- Deputies in DeKalb County arrested a mother and father on charges of truancy after they allegedly kept their 11-year-old daughter out of school for more than a year.

Channel 2's Tom Jones was at the scene as DeKalb County authorities placed Tiffini Green and her husband, Kelvin Lovett, under arrest.

Authorities said Green withdrew her 11-year-old daughter from school in 2007 and never re-enrolled her.

The would-be sixth-grader cried in a back room as the arrests unfolded.

The parents face hundreds of counts of educational neglect, authorities said.

The solicitor general has made pursuing parents who don't send their children to school a top priority. "This is not about the parents. This is about the child," said Solicitor General Robert James.

James said the arrests are about intervening in a child's life and keeping them from becoming a statistic. Eighty-eight percent of Georgia's inmates are drop-outs.

Green first said she withdrew her daughter because she was homeless. She then said her daughter was homeschooled. "I had to take my daughter out because I was out on the streets," Green said.

A DeKalb County investigator said Green never filed any intent to homeschool.

Investigators at the scene tried to reassure the 11-year-old. "We're going to make sure you get in school so you can get an education," said one officer.

The 11-year-old's sister is taking care of her while her parents are in jail.

The parents will appear before a judge Friday.

Each educational neglect charge carries a maximum of a year in jail and a $1,000 fine.

Well we can't have people that have not been "Socially adjusted" by the fascist school system wandering around can we?

I don't know, I mean how in the hell was she supposed to show intent to homeschool when she was homeless and worried about where she and her family were going to eat or sleep.

Then again, it makes it seem like they have a home now, so why wasn't she re-enrolled?
[Edited 2/9/09 15:23pm]

Usually one needs a home in order to homeschool, right?

Even if homeless she'd be getting at least one meal a day at school, possibly two. She'd be better off in school that way.

so many questions

how old is her sister? is any of this in the best interest of the child?
were the parents warned it would come to this?
is fining a family perilously living on the edge really a good idea?
all i see is a young child that will blame herself if they lose their home again.

surely there was a better way to get the girl back in school???

i was homeless for a little over a year around age 8. my parents lost our apt., and we had to sleep in our car. at first they were able to take me to school. but my dad was looking for work constantly which made it difficult for him to keep taking me to school, so my parents had to take me out of school and home school me (car school really ).....no matter what my mom would still teach me everyday my school lesson plans. my parents did the best they could, and my dad did find a job once again (he was never a lazy man, always a hard worker).

i feel for this family...sometimes the police or law doesn't understand what people go through just to survive. i remember people saying to my parents that i should be taken away simply because we were homeless. just because we were homeless didn't mean that i wasn't loved and cared for.

kimrachell said:

I had a friend in school who was homeless. Her parents,her brother,and herself all lived in there car,and I don't believe that either parent worked,and she was at school everyday. It was a little sad though,cause they did'nt even have a place to bathe,and I remember asking one of the PE teachers if maybe she could shower in the locker room before school.

kimrachell said:

Wow! Thank you for sharing that.

kimrachell said:

emm said:

And their words of comfort were: Don't worry, we'll get you in school again.
I don't that she was crying because of that, she may have other worries on her mind than school right now.

kimrachell said:

Even as a child going through this situation you still were able to recognize this,
and that love and caring for you was important.