Lower Merion parents file motion in webcam case

Parents of several Lower Merion School District students filed a motion Friday opposing a bid for a class-action lawsuit over the district's practice of secretly activating webcams on student laptops.

The motion points out that nearly 500 parents of between 500 and 600 district high school students have signed a petition opposing certification of the original lawsuit as a class-action matter.

"They simply do not want to be represented by plaintiffs or their counsel in their pursuit of a litigation strategy that protracts rather than resolves the litigation, and that harms rather than benefits the students," the motion says.

The original lawsuit was filed on behalf of Harriton High School student Blake Robbins and alleged that the district invaded his privacy by recording webcam shots of him in his Penn Valley house. Robbins is represented by lawyer Mark S. Haltzman, who could not be reached for comment. The parents filing the motion are identified as Colleen and Kenneth Wortley, Frances and David McComb, and Christopher and Lorena Chambers. The district also opposes the class-action certification. - Robert Moran