School districts routinely demand to legally "stand in the shoes of the parents,", so maybe the father should sue them too.  After all, kids spend the majority of their time up until age 17/18 in school. How could the school district let this happen? And who else can be made culpable for the poor choices these unfortunate young people made? How about us--you and me--for not demanding there be sufficient treatment options for substance abuse and those who are mentally ill? I could go on and on.