Washington Supreme Court declares voter-approved charter school law unconstitutional

The Washington State Supreme Court Friday ruled that the voter-approved charter school law – backed by some of the most prominent business leaders in the state – was unconstitutional. Chief Justice Barbara Madsen wrote in her opinion that charter schools as defined in the law were not "common schools," and therefore could not use the same funding sources the public school system uses. By diverting public school funds to charter schools, the law violates the state constitution, the court ruled. "Because…