casesShinoffNCTarticle

North County Times' efforts to make SDCOE
attorney Daniel Shinoff look good
And the bizarre effort by NCT to hide its own puff piece

In 2003 the NCT wrote a nice puff piece about Mr. Shinoff.
Then in 2009 the NCT erased the story and removed it from its archives. Why?
Perhaps to eliminate proof that Mr. Shinoff filed a false (or highly misleading)
document with his declaration in his lawsuit against me for defamation.

The NCT removed its front-page story about Dan Shinoff from its archives,
but left the photo of Mr. Shinoff. The original story may be found in the
column at right. > > >

The documents below were downloaded on March 26, 2010.

< < < This is where the Shinoff biographical
story used to be.

Here's a digital version of the search above:

Search

Found (30) for "Daniel Shinoff"

OCEANSIDE: MiraCosta wants state's high court to review Richart decision

MiraCosta College trustees will ask the California Supreme Court to overturn a recent appellate
court ruling that invalidates a roughly $1.6 million settlement between the board and its former
superintendent and president.

Jan 20, 2010 | 1:00 pm | (19) Comments
REGION: Office of Education blocks employee's return

For a second time, the San Diego County Office of Education has moved to block a fired employee
from returning to work even though a judge ordered him reinstated because the agency failed to
consider his whistle-blower complaint for alleged unethical practices.

Apr 21, 2009 | 12:00 am | Loading…
REGION: Agency fights reinstating worker with whistleblower complaint

The San Diego County Office of Education said Monday it will appeal a judge's finding that a fired
employee must be reinstated because the agency failed to consider his whistleblower complaint for
alleged unethical practices.

Mar 30, 2009 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Earlier mediation held with MiraCosta group

OCEANSIDE - MiraCosta College officials and two college board members met privately with then-
president Victoria Munoz Richart, her attorney and a mediator 11 days before the board agreed to a
controversial $1.5 million buyout of Richart's contract, documents show.

Oct 04, 2007 | 12:00 am | Loading…
MCC attorneys may continue in Hatoff discipline case

SAN DIEGO - The law firm pressing disciplinary action against a former MiraCosta College vice
president may continue to represent the district, a judge with the Office Of Administrative Hearings
ruled Wednesday.

Sep 07, 2007 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Judge reverses ruling: MCC attorneys can stay

VISTA -- The attorneys representing MiraCosta College may continue to serve the district, a Vista
Superior Court judge ruled Friday.

Sep 01, 2007 | 12:00 am | Loading…
MiraCosta College trustees at odds; legal representation complex

OCEANSIDE - The political Grand Canyon separating MiraCosta College trustees runs so deep and
wide now that in one high-profile lawsuit against the school, the board's majority of four is
represented by one attorney, and the board minority of three is represented by another.

Aug 28, 2007 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Judge hears arguments to disqualify MCC attorneys

VISTA -- Superior Court Judge Michael Anello heard arguments Friday for and against disqualifying
the law firm representing MiraCosta College in the case of a former vice president who has sued the
college, but issued no final ruling.

Aug 25, 2007 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Judge's tentative ruling disqualifies MCC attorneys from Hatoff case

VISTA -- Lawyers working for MiraCosta College should be disqualified from defending the school
against a $24 million lawsuit filed by former vice president of instruction Julie Hatoff, according to a
Superior Court judge's tentative ruling Thursday.

Aug 24, 2007 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Thanks to MiraCosta's Loyal Opposition

With news of Tony Blair's departure as British prime minister, I am reminded the English call the rival
party Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition. Contrary to the assessment of North County Times' editors,
the MiraCosta College faculty has faithfully acted as the college's Loyal Opposition.

Jul 04, 2007 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Judge throws out lawsuit against Richart

VISTA -- A Superior Court judge has thrown out a lawsuit that a former dean at MiraCosta College
had filed against the school's now-departing president, the college's attorney said Friday.

Jun 30, 2007 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Lawsuit against Vista district reaches state Supreme Court

NORTH COUNTY -- The state Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments Thursday in a lawsuit
in which a former Vista High School student alleges that a teacher sexually abused her almost 30
years ago and that the Vista school district failed to prevent it.

May 27, 2007 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Longtime MiraCosta College official placed on leave

OCEANSIDE -- Julie Hatoff, vice president for instructional services at MiraCosta College since
1983, was involuntarily placed on administrative leave Friday and asked to clear out her desk.

Aug 26, 2006 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Fallbrook High School responds to ACLU

FALLBROOK -- In a formal response Thursday to the American Civil Liberties Union, the Fallbrook
Union High School District said a 15-year-old student was not disciplined for wearing an American
flag to school on March 31, but that students were asked not to display flags on campus that we…

Apr 21, 2006 | 12:00 am | Loading…
State Supreme Court to hear lawsuit against VUSD

VISTA —— A lawsuit alleging that a teacher had sex multiple times with one of his teenage students
at Vista High School more than 25 years ago could set a statewide legal standard regarding when
such cases can be filed against public agencies, such as school districts.

Jul 01, 2005 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Jury awards gay, ex-Poway High students $300K

SAN DIEGO —— A Superior Court jury Wednesday awarded two former Poway High School
students a combined total of $300,000 after determining that school officials failed to stop ongoing
harassment they suffered because of their sexual orientation.

Jun 09, 2005 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Poway High student sues RBHS principal, school district

VISTA —— A Poway High School student has filed a lawsuit alleging the principal and an assistant
principal at Rancho Bernardo High School assaulted and battered him at a basketball game
between the two schools.

May 03, 2005 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Court reinstates lawsuit against VUSD

VISTA —— A lawsuit alleging the Vista Unified School District failed to stop a teacher from having a
sexual relationship with a teenage student more than 25 years ago should be reinstated, a state
appeals court ruled Tuesday.

Apr 06, 2005 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Jury awards $1.18 million to former Orange Glen High coach

VISTA —— A jury Tuesday ordered the Escondido Union High School District to pay a former
basketball coach nearly $1.2 million for wrongfully firing him.

Apr 06, 2005 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Jury gets case of former Escondido coach

VISTA —— Jury deliberations began late Monday afternoon in a civil trial filed by a former Orange
Glen High School basketball coach who wants nearly $1.2 million for claims that he was fired in
retaliation for a rift between the coach and the principal's husband.

Apr 05, 2005 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Lawsuit against Escondido school district set for trial

VISTA —— A lawsuit that alleges two autistic students in the Escondido Union School District were
battered by a teacher is scheduled to go to trial April 1, an attorney for the school district confirmed
late Thursday.

Mar 18, 2005 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Jury awards aspiring school psychologist $1

VISTA —— A Superior Court jury awarded an aspiring school psychologist just $1 last week in the
trial of a lawsuit he filed against the Escondido Union High School District over the premature
termination of his internship in 2002, the district's attorney said Thursday.

Mar 04, 2005 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Judge dismisses lawsuit against Fallbrook school officials

VISTA -- The lawsuit a former San Onofre School teacher filed against the Fallbrook Union
Elementary School District and two administrators was dismissed Friday, more than two weeks after
a jury began hearing evidence, attorneys in the case said.

Jun 12, 2004 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Lawsuit against Fallbrook school district goes to trial

VISTA -- A Superior Court jury began hearing testimony this week in the trial of a former Fallbrook
Union Elementary School District teacher's lawsuit accusing it and two administrators of fraud.

May 29, 2004 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Former aide loses suit against Poway district

VISTA -- A Superior Court jury decided Thursday that a former instructional aide in the Poway
Unified School District was sexually harassed by the teacher with whom she worked.

Nov 14, 2003 | 12:00 am | Loading…
Mother sues PUSD in molestation case

SAN DIEGO -- A Poway mother whose sons allegedly were molested by a former Midland
Elementary School employee has filed a lawsuit seeking unspecified damages from the Poway
Unified School District and the former employee.

Sep 30, 2003 | 12:00 am | Loading…

Gavel to Gavel: Escondido woman denies attempted murder charge
VISTA -- An Escondido woman accused of pointing her gun at police after shooting herself in the
head pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges of attempted murder of a police officer and assault
with a firearm on a police officer, a prosecutor said.
Sep 26, 2003 | 12:00 am | Loading…

Family sues SMUSD for alleged negligence
BRUCE KAUFFMAN
Jun 08, 2001 | 12:00 am | Loading…

Claims investigation cost Poway schools nearly $54,000
ANDREA MOSS
May 13, 2001 | 12:00 am | Loading…

District looks to revise harassment policies
ANDREA MOSS
Apr 28, 2001 | 12:00 am | Loading…

Originally:
The Puff
Piece
This story was
available online for
six years (2003-2009)

Currently only Shinoff's photo remains

The April 27, 2003 Shinoff article by Scott
Marshall has disappeared from the NCT archives.

Here are the results of a search for "Daniel Shinoff" conducted on March 26,
2010:

Poway
attorney
makes
career
defending
schools

April 27, 2003
by SCOTT MARSHALL

Attorney Daniel Shinoff
has been representing
school districts
countywide for 20 years

ESCONDIDO ---- For 20
years, when school
districts countywide have
needed legal help, their
calls most often have
reached the desk of one
man ---- Daniel Shinoff.

Ranging from teachers
alleging discrimination
to wrongful-death
lawsuits involving
students, the legal
issues that have
confronted districts have
varied and grown more
complex over the years,
but Shinoff, 47, of Poway
and his law firm have
remained a constant.

"Tragically, the business
of education has
transformed to the
business of litigation,"
Shinoff said in a recent
interview with the North
County Times. "I guess
it's good for lawyers. I'm
not so sure it's good for
kids."

Shinoff said that over the
years he has devoted
more time to advisory
efforts to try to prevent
legal problems for
school districts, but 70
percent of his practice
still involves
representing the districts
in litigation.

Diane Crosier, the
senior director of a joint
powers authority made
up of school districts
countywide that
contracts with Shinoff's
firm, said that the
districts have been
pleased with Shinoff's
work and that he has
done a good job.

[Maura Larkins
comment: Diane
Crosier and Daniel
Shinoff have a "you
scratch my back, I'll
scratch yours"
arrangement,
described in Rodger
Hartnett's complaint.]

Shinoff also has earned
accolades from some of
those who have
opposed him in court.

When a La Costa
Canyon High School
football player sued the
San Dieguito Union High
School District and
others because of head
injuries he suffered in a
game, the result was
what the boy's attorney
described as
"scorched-earth
litigation."

The landscape changed
when Shinoff became
directly involved in the
case as the trial date
approached, said C.
Colin Cossio, the boy's
attorney.

"He was the first person
in that case who set us
all down and got us all
talking," said Cossio,
who described Shinoff
as a "consummate
gentleman."

Cossio said Shinoff is
the type of person who
had the boy's interests in
mind even though
Shinoff was
representing the school
district.

As a father, Shinoff said
he tries to keep cases in
perspective.

"What happens in
litigation is, right or
wrong isn't the issue,"
said Shinoff, who is
married and the father of
four sons. "The
perception of being
wronged is one you have
to realize. You have to
give it the dignity that's
necessary and then you
have to try to address it.

[Larkins' note: Dignity?
Shinoff does not
normally treat other
people's children as if
they were his own.
Perhaps this happens
when the plaintiff has a
powerful lawyer, but
Shinoff is famous for
showing contempt for
students and
employees whom he
opposes. He has
worked to protect
bullies, including at
Santana High School
AFTER THE SHOOTING.
His tactics include
trying to get parents
arrested (see David
Alberts, Lindsey
Stewart and Claudia
Houston cases).

"I don't consider part of
my job, when a child is a
plaintiff, to embarrass
them or to humiliate
them. I want to keep in
mind that I'm
representing an
educational institution."

Tom Galyean, an
Escondido attorney who
opposed Shinoff in a
1994 civil trial, said
Shinoff was "extremely
competent, ethical and
compassionate."

[Several people have
noted that Shinoff has a
custom of buying off
opposition attorneys by
offering them work, or
other methods. He has
been sued for "tortious
interference."]

A 'zealous advocate'

Galyean represented a
girl injured in a 1992
school bus crash in San
Marcos that killed former
San Marcos Councilman
Mark Loscher's daughter
and injured others.
Loscher and his family
settled their case short
of trial.

Galyean's client went to
trial, but reached a
settlement with the San
Marcos school district
and the other lawsuit
defendants the day
before jury deliberations
were to begin.

"I recall he (Shinoff) took
a very active role in
helping resolve that,"
Galyean said. "He's a
zealous advocate, but
he's compassionate."

[Larkins' note: Yes,
Shinoff is very
compassionate with
certain types of people,
especially politically
powerful people. I'm
sure the district didn't
want more negative
publicity about this
high-profile case. Most
of Shinoff's cases are
covered up by the
media. The students
and employees that
Shinoff and school
districts harm for profit
are unknown to the
public. Changing that is
one of the purposes of
this website.]

Shinoff's interest in
being an attorney dates
back to his childhood in
Winnipeg, Manitoba, but
his specialization in the
area of education started
in 1982 "strictly by
happenstance," he said.

Born and raised in
Canada, Shinoff decided
on the law as a career
when he was a child in
part because he saw it
as
a way to make a
difference,
he said...

A detour to Israel

His educational path
took a detour in 1973
with the start of the Yom
Kippur War. An
18-year-old at the time,
Shinoff went to Israel to
help the country after
most of the men and
women there were
called up to military
service for the war.

"I was a young kid and I
had a strong Jewish
identity," Shinoff said of
his reasons for going to
Israel. "To me it was a
historical attachment to
the state of Israel. ... I've
always had a strong
Jewish identity."

Shinoff recalled working
as a fruit picker and
seeing and hearing
missiles fly overhead.
He said he asked his
supervisor if they should
seek shelter from the
bombs, but was told just
to get back to work.

"Once I was there, my
folks made it very clear
education was going to
be a part of my life, and I
wasn't going to be a
farmer," Shinoff said.

In 1975 and 1976,
Shinoff attended Tel Aviv
University, where he met
his wife, Michelle, a
Brooklyn native studying
overseas. The two
married in 1977 and
returned to Canada;
Shinoff attended the
University of Manitoba.

They moved to San
Diego in 1978 because
Michelle wanted to get
away from the cold
climate north of the
border, Daniel Shinoff
said.

Shinoff attended
Western State
University law school in
San Diego ---- now
known as Thomas
Jefferson School of
Law ---- and in 1981
began working as
in-house counsel for
Price Co. Shinoff joined
the San Diego law firm
of which he is a partner
today in June 1982 and
almost immediately
began representing
school districts through
the joint powers
authority...

Shinoff said some of the
experience he has
gathered working with
public school districts
has helped him away
from work as well, as he
has devoted time to
working with the Jewish
private school his four
children attend, the San
Diego Jewish Academy.
Shinoff's service has
included serving as
president of the
academy's 19-member
board of directors...

Married to the daughter
of Holocaust survivors
and having a "strong
Jewish identity" since
childhood, Shinoff said
he wanted his children
to attend the private
Jewish school to help
them develop a Jewish
identity and connection
to Israel.

Shinoff said his
participation on the
school board and his
plans to become
involved in a Jewish
group for college
students, Hillel, are
meant to send a
message to his children
as well...

Digital version of new page:

Home / Uncategorized
Society deserves an 'A' in history

* Story
* Discussion

Posted: May 6, 2001 12:00 am | No Comments Posted | Print

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buy this photo Don Boomer / Staff Photographer Attorney Daniel Shinoff has been representing school
districts countywide for 20 years.

Jeff Frank

North County Times

The biggest surprise in learning that the Escondido Historical Society is celebrating its 45th anniversary
was that it is only 45 years old.

This is a city that takes pride in its past. Talk to anyone who has been here a while, and you'll get tons of
stories about the way Escondido used to be and all sorts of details about how it grew.

So it's strange that it wasn't until 1956 that the society was founded. No matter, because it's done a great
job of catching up.

Those unfamiliar with the society might be surprised by their first visit to the Heritage Walk Museum, where
the organization is based. For one thing, it's not really a museum. It's actually six buildings that are not only
filled with Escondido history, but are a part of it.

There's the city's first library, built in 1894; the Santa Fe train depot dating from 1888 with a railroad car
from the 1920s; a replica of the Bandy Blacksmith Shop, which opened in 1908; plus a barn and a
four-bedroom Victorian house from the early 1900s.

All of the buildings were relocated from their previous locations to Grape Day Park and are under the care
of the historical society. A walk of 100 yards can take you back 100 years.

That's a journey I decided to take this week in recognition of the 45th anniversary. Historical society
members Jack Owens and Jim Tucker, both longtime Escondido residents, joined me on the journey. You
could call them the color commentators.

I'd look at a picture or artifact and they'd give me the background information.

We found lots of great stuff. The old library has Escondido High School yearbooks going back to 1903.
The train depot still contains the dispatcher's table and telegraph, plus the platform scale used to weigh
fruit grown in the area. Standing tall and looking fierce is the 2,200-pound grizzly bear for which Bear
Valley is named.

The barn houses the 1935 Borra Winery Dodge panel truck and the 1917 Willys Overland used for
deliveries from Rube Nelson's grocery, along with an old working printing press.

Blacksmiths still work in the Bandy shop making tools and doing all types of iron work. The railroad car
features a working scale model of the train that used to make the 22-mile trip to Oceanside. The Victorian
House is decorated and furnished in the way it might have looked in the early 1900s.

There's plenty more, all of which will be open to the public during the 45th anniversary open house from 1
to 4 p.m. today. The event features a bluegrass band and free popcorn, popped in a turn-of-the-century
machine.

If you can't make it today, the historic buildings are open from 1 to 4 p.m. every Thursday, Friday and
Saturday. Make sure you take advantage of the knowledge of the volunteer docents who staff each
building. They've got the stories behind the pictures.

Contact staff columnist Jeff Frank at (760) 740-5419, fax (760) 745-3769 or jfrank@nctimes.com.

5/6/01

Posted in Uncategorized on Sunday, May 6, 2001 12:00 am Updated: 9:53 pm.

The North County Times
erased this story after I
published this link. The link
now takes the reader to a
page with a 2001 story about
the Escondido Historical
Society. Bizarrely, the new
NCT story still has the 2003
photo of Dan Shinoff on the
page. The NCT might
change it again, so I've saved
the preposterous page
HERE. (Sorry, it
didn't save well.)
> > >
The North County
Times has also
eliminated this story
from its archive
search. (Sorry, this
didn't save well,
either.) Presumably, the
NCT did this at Mr. Shinoff's
request. What exactly are
Shinoff and the NCT trying to
hide? The fact that Shinoff
filed a false document with
his declaration in his
defamation case against
Maura Larkins?
--March 25, 2010

Education Reform Report