Did you think that just because former Schools Chancellor Cathie Black had been unceremoniously canned (and replaced with the anti-Black Dennis Walcott), the story was over? Ha! New York City parents aren't going to let their rare victory over Mayor Bloomberg slide away that easy. In fact, a group of parents calling themselves the New York City Parents Union have filed a Notice of Claim to sue Michael Bloomberg (not the city) for $100 million dollars over the screwup. That's nearly $1 million for each day Cathie Black worked!
Basically the parents are saying that Bloomberg should have known what a terrible choice Black was, and therefore should pay for the damage he has caused "as the individual now held accountable under New York state’s education law for the performance of the public education system."
One claimant, Brooklyn parent Mariama Sanoh, explained in a statement: “When outraged parents stated that Cathie Black was unqualified to be chancellor, Mayor Bloomberg accused us—the real stakeholders in our children’s education—of playing politics. The mayor has committed misfeasance and our children have suffered. There have to be consequences for these bad choices.”
"The mayor took a lot from the City's school children with this error, and he should be required to make repairs—in a sum that he is uniquely qualified to do," a lawyer in the case said. And if by some miracle the case were to actually happen and Bloomberg were to pay up, the group says they would spend the money on teacher training.
The Notice of Claims was filed with the City Comptrollers Office, and so far City Hall has declined to comment on it. But Kate O'Brien Ahlers, a spokeswoman for the City's Law Department, has a very strong opinion on the matter, telling reporters: "This suit so lacks merit it's not even worth me commenting."
