06/11/2008

Associated Press

A Walnut Grove woman has been sentenced to two days in jail because her 13-year-old son missed nearly half of the 2006-2007 school year.

Kathleen Casteel was sentenced Tuesday to two days of "shock time," ordered to complete a parenting life skills class by Sept. 10 and undergo two years of unsupervised probation.

She was convicted in April of violating the state's compulsory attendance law, a misdemeanor.

Jurors had recommended Casteel spend seven days in jail.

The judge also ordered Casteel, who has home-schooled her son since his enrollment was revoked from Springfield Public Schools, to put the boy back into a public school.

Prosecutors had argued that Casteel was not home-schooling her son in compliance with state law, an assertion that defense attorneys challenged.

Assistant Greene County Prosecutor Joe Knipp said the sentence might be the first time a parent has been jailed in Missouri for truancy charges.

Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education spokesman Jim Morris said the judge's order that Casteel enroll her son in public school also is unusual.

"That is a rare step," Morris said, noting that neither his office nor many school districts regulate home schooling. "The state has always had a hands-off policy."

Casteel is scheduled to begin her jail term June 27, but defense attorneys plan to appeal the sentence.

Casteel portrayed herself during her trial as a single mother of five whose attempts to get her son to go to school were met with violent outbursts.

"I'm just a single mom and I did everything I could," Casteel said Tuesday. "I didn't do anything wrong.

She said that her son, who was born with a low IQ, will go to school once he has re-enrolled, or else.

"He'll go, because if he doesn't, I'll be here for probably assault because I'll beat his butt black," Casteel said. "Then they'll see I'm doing something."

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Information from: Springfield News-Leader, http://www.springfieldnews-leader.com