In this Monday, June 23, 2014 photo, sixteen-year-old Lucan Battison, left, with his lawyer, Jol Bates, arrives at the High Court in Wellington, New Zealand, where Battison is fighting his suspension from his Catholic high school because of his long hair. In a decision released Friday, June 27, 2014, New Zealand High Court judge David Collins found that both Battison鈥檚 suspension and the school鈥檚 hair rules were unlawful. (AP Photo/New Zealand Herald, Mark Mitchell)
WELLINGTON, New Zealand鈥擜 judge ruled Friday that a New Zealand schoolboy need not cut his hair before returning to class and that his Catholic high school had been wrong to suspend him for having long locks.
Sixteen-year-old Lucan Battison was suspended last month from St. John鈥檚 College in the town of Hastings. Principal Paul Melloy said Battison had breached a rule that states students must keep their hair short, tidy, off their collars and out of their eyes.
But Battison argued his naturally curly hair would look unruly if cropped and he was prepared to wear it in a bun to comply with the school鈥檚 standards. Rather than cut his hair, the student and his family took their case to court.
In his decision, New Zealand High Court judge David Collins found the schoolboy鈥檚 actions weren鈥檛 harmful or dangerous to other students, didn鈥檛 amount to serious misconduct, and therefore didn鈥檛 warrant suspension. He also found St. John鈥檚 didn鈥檛 provide enough clarity in its hair rules to ensure students could comply with them.
While the school disagreed with Battison鈥檚 hairstyle, it didn鈥檛 dispute his description of himself as a 鈥渢ypical teenager.鈥� In fact, the school described him in court as a 鈥渘ice young man.鈥�
The judge noted that 鈥渁n insight into Lucan鈥檚 character can be gleaned from the fact that in March this year he received a civil bravery award for participating in the rescue of two young women, who nearly drowned in dangerous swimming conditions at a Hawke鈥檚 Bay beach.鈥�
The judge also noted that Battison represented St. John鈥檚 in rugby and loved attending the school, in part because his faith was important to him.
Battison鈥檚 parents Troy Battison and Tania Doidge said in a statement their son had never broken the rules because his bun kept his hair off his collar and out of his eyes.
鈥淚n 2014, when girls鈥� hair lengths at school aren鈥檛 questioned, why should the rules be different for boys?鈥� they said.
鈥淭he criticism we have received as parents has been hurtful and unnecessary,鈥� they added.
In his ruling, Judge Collins noted that one of Battison鈥檚 lawyers had tried to provide the school board鈥檚 disciplinary committee with statements from two hairdressers, one of whom said Battison鈥檚 hair was already short and would 鈥渓ook like 鈥榓n untidy afro鈥� if it was cut shorter,鈥� but that the committee apparently chose not to accept the testimony.
Battison was allowed to return to his school earlier this month after the judge said he could stay in class while the case progressed.
In a statement issued Friday by St. John鈥檚, which contains grammatical errors, Principal Paul Melloy said: 鈥淣aturally we are disappointed of the decision made in Wellington today.鈥�
鈥淭he Board of Trustees are taking time to consider the judgment made by Justice Collins in terms of its impact, both on our school and on other schools.鈥�