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Truancy Crackdown Lands OC Parents In Jail

SANTA ANA (CBS) — A truancy crackdown in Orange County is ending up with parents who allow their kids to skip school now behind bars.

KNX 1070's Mike Landa reports five parents have been handcuffed and hauled off to jail for failure to keep their kids in school.

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Orange County prosecutor Tracie Renauro says this is the first time parents of chronic truants have been prosecuted.

"You know the saddest part of all of this? These kids want to go to school," Renauro said. "They're looking to belong and to fit in, they're looking for an education."

Renauro pointed to a case in which one child missed 30 consecutive days of school.

After being handcuffed, one local parent said she sometimes had to go to work early and just assumed her daughter was going to class.

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