Woman Jailed for Sending Kids to Better School District - Thoughts

Recently, I read a story about an Ohio woman, Kelley Williams-Bolar, who was convicted of felony theft and fraud for trying to send her two daughters to a neighboring school district (rather than her own, a notably poorer district.) The Story on ABC News. I'd first heard about this through a friend's shared facebook link a petition calling for a reduction on the sentence. I went over it again and again, and I simply cannot understand all the decisions here. Did the school district really need to send out private investigators to ensure that students are coming from the right places? I guess so, as they found over 100 cases where folks were sending their kids to the better school, but still, how is it possible that in the same small city we have such a massive descrepancy in education quality? And finally, why didn't Ms. Williams-Bolar simply move in with her father (who lived in the richer school district), instead of lying in the first place?

I did not sign the petition for the unfair sentencing, as this woman represents a pretty terrible case. I absolutely do not believe her when she says her motivations were 'just to keep the kids safe.' This woman wanted to game the system, to get her kids an advantage that others pay for. Everyone makes sacrifices for their children. She tried to game the system to explicitly NOT have to make those same sacrifices. She didn't even admit wrongdoing when they confronted her with the lie, she had her father falsify documents instead. Her actions example the worst in us, and 10 days in jail, with 3 years probation isn't at all a 'heavy sentence.'

I do believe that the citizens in Akron, Ohio need to look seriously at the descrepency of education quality, and hold their civic leaders accountable here. How can you allow a publically-funded education system to be so one-sided? Those who live in the more affluent district 'pay more' for education (in terms of property taxes), but I can gaurantee that nobody in the city of Akron wants kids on the other side of town to be so poorly-served. Shame on those city council members and school board members who would allow such a disparity within the same city limits.