PC gone wild, volume XVI: 14-yr-old expelled for piece of paper

[Pogo]

The PC stoopid ... it hurts...

>> Kyle Thompson, 14, was joking around with his buddies at Harrison High School in Farmington Hills, Mich., last March, when one of those friends grabbed a sheet of paper labeled “Hit List” out of Thompson’s notebook.

Okay, so as a high school teacher, I find it extremely annoying when my students are distracted by something that has nothing to do with our class and what we are learning. However, what happened next is unprecedented in my experience.

Thompson allegedly had a list of people he wanted to hit on the football field. He and his friends say the list was just a joke and, when their teacher wanted to take a look, they let her do so.

According to Thompson, he and the teacher engaged in what he thought was a friendly game of tug-of-war with the paper, before he eventually let go.

According to the teacher, Thompson assaulted her. She turned him in, and the police were called. Not only has Thompson been expelled for 180 days from all Michigan high schools, but he was also arrested, handcuffed, taken to the police station and charged with assault. He may face jail time if he’s convicted. -- story link

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=gEMslXo_3Ig]Gone Too Far: Our Kids in Handcuffs - YouTube[/ame]

 

[wavingrl]

ridiculous.

'Tug of war'--unless 'attitude'/defiance/disrespect was also involved it is hard to imagine how this became assault.

In this case it seems appropriate that the ACLU is involved.

 

[Jarlaxle]

He now needs to track down the teacher and beat her to a pulp. His life is over...might as well make it worthwhile!

 

[wavingrl]

He now needs to track down the teacher and beat her to a pulp. His life is over...might as well make it worthwhile!

I taught some rough kids and if I had chosen to report one of them for disciplinary action for a similar incident, I would have received disciplinary action. Somewhere there is middle ground--common sense.

I always try to picture 'the kind of teacher' who would do something like this. Quite possibly 'one of the best'--or the kind that tells others 'I am one of the best'. Others think the individual has issues, fwiw.

 

[R.C. Christian]

Fucking pigs. Fucking teachers. Fucking country. I mean that in a negative way.

 

[S.J.]

Sounds like the kid had a target list of other students they intended to physically harm.

 

[wavingrl]

Sounds like the kid had a target list of other students they intended to physically harm.

it was stated several times in the article that the list was for a football game--'friends' that he wanted to 'hit'

if there is 'more' then I wish that fyi had been provided

it sounds preposterous based on the facts given--I assume an investigation was conducted requiring months of evidence gathering etc. and this is the outcome--

 

[Pogo]

Sounds like the kid had a target list of other students they intended to physically harm.

it was stated several times in the article that the list was for a football game--'friends' that he wanted to 'hit'

if there is 'more' then I wish that fyi had been provided

it sounds preposterous based on the facts given--I assume an investigation was conducted requiring months of evidence gathering etc. and this is the outcome--

SJ's not the brightest bulb in the light tower if you know what I'm saying. God forbid he should actually read the article through. It would have revealed that the case is about the alleged "assault" -- not what was on the paper.

 

[Pauli007001]

ridiculous.

'Tug of war'--unless 'attitude'/defiance/disrespect was also involved it is hard to imagine how this became assault.

In this case it seems appropriate that the ACLU is involved.

Was the notebook school/government property?
Did the teacher have a warrant?
Seems to me more like an invasion of privacy by fanatical government employees overstepping the remit of their responsibility.

 

[Vox]

ridiculous.

'Tug of war'--unless 'attitude'/defiance/disrespect was also involved it is hard to imagine how this became assault.

In this case it seems appropriate that the ACLU is involved.

finally - this crap has been going all around wild in the country - harming the kids and taking away our rights.
where the heck is the ACLU?
this "zero tolerance" shit has to be thrown away

 

[C_Clayton_Jones]

The list was not what got Thompson in trouble. It was the tug-of-war that landed him with an expulsion of 180 school days from Harrison High School in Farmington, Mich.

Thompson's teacher claimed the student assaulted her. The teen was arrested, handcuffed and taken to the police station. He may also face jail time if he's convicted of assault.

…it wasn’t what was written on the t-shirt, but how the student responded when asked about the t-shirt…

…it wasn’t what the student was texting, but the student’s response when asked to surrender the smart phone…

and so on, and so forth…

In this case, the student wasn’t arrested for his ‘hit list, ‘ but the alleged assault against the teacher.

Again, there is no such thing as ‘PC,’ that the student is not subject to potential punitive measures as a consequence of the ‘hit list’ alone is proof of that. Had the student simply surrendered the ‘hit list’ at the outset, this wouldn’t even be an issue. And if he believed his civil liberties were being violated as a consequence, he could later pursue that in the context of civil law.

As for the ‘zero tolerance’ policy, that’s a matter of law which needs to be addressed by lawmakers and the courts if the law is perceived to be ‘too strict’ and not working as lawmakers intended. And the zero tolerance policy/law is also evidence that there is no such thing as ‘PC’ because the law is content neutral, as its purpose is to protect school officials, not stifle freedom of speech or expression.

Last, concerning Thompson's teacher claiming he assaulted her, the student is being afforded his right to due process, and he is presumed innocent accordingly. Remember that assault can manifest in the context of a verbal threat, no physical contact need occur, where the ‘tug of war’ can appropriately and legally be construed as indeed assault. Assault can be a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on the jurisdiction and circumstances, where battery is actual physical contact and a felony.

 

[Steven_R]

Gee, with stories like this, I don't understand why more and more parents are turning towards homeschooling and private schools.

 

[Politico]

Sounds like the kid had a target list of other students they intended to physically harm.

Sounds like he was popular in class. No one apparently stood up for him.

 

[Pogo]

Sounds like the kid had a target list of other students they intended to physically harm.

Sounds like he was popular in class. No one apparently stood up for him.

Where do you get that idea?
All they mentioned was that the witnesses (classmates) agreed that the teacher was 'laughing' during the tug-of-war. That's not standing up?

 

[S.J.]

Sounds like the kid had a target list of other students they intended to physically harm.

it was stated several times in the article that the list was for a football game--'friends' that he wanted to 'hit'

if there is 'more' then I wish that fyi had been provided

it sounds preposterous based on the facts given--I assume an investigation was conducted requiring months of evidence gathering etc. and this is the outcome--

SJ's not the brightest bulb in the light tower if you know what I'm saying. God forbid he should actually read the article through. It would have revealed that the case is about the alleged "assault" -- not what was on the paper.

Oh, I see. I'm not permitted to comment on anything except the "alleged assault". I guess I can't mention the paper, which was the reason for the incident in the first place. Next time I'll check with you before I post just to make sure it meets with your approval.

 

[Noomi]

Sounds like the kid had a target list of other students they intended to physically harm.

That's what I thought. He wrote a list of students on the footy team he wanted to hit. Whether he was joking or not isn't the point - he carried that paper around with him for some reason.
When the teacher demanded he hand her the paper, he lashed out.

He deserves his suspension.

 

[S.J.]

Sounds like the kid had a target list of other students they intended to physically harm.

That's what I thought. He wrote a list of students on the footy team he wanted to hit. Whether he was joking or not isn't the point - he carried that paper around with him for some reason.
When the teacher demanded he hand her the paper, he lashed out.

He deserves his suspension.

Ok Pogo, there's your queue. Let her have it.

 

[laughinReaper]

This PC bullshit is out of control.

 

[Politico]

Sounds like the kid had a target list of other students they intended to physically harm.

Sounds like he was popular in class. No one apparently stood up for him.

Where do you get that idea?
All they mentioned was that the witnesses (classmates) agreed that the teacher was 'laughing' during the tug-of-war. That's not standing up?

No. Otherwise he wouldn't have been charged with anything.

 

[laughinReaper]

Sounds like the kid had a target list of other students they intended to physically harm.

That's what I thought. He wrote a list of students on the footy team he wanted to hit. Whether he was joking or not isn't the point - he carried that paper around with him for some reason.
When the teacher demanded he hand her the paper, he lashed out.

He deserves his suspension.

A suspension for 180 days is insane and he was arrested. It was a football "hit List" so whats that mean? He's gonna tackle somebody on the field? That's what football is. The kids he tackles would be wearing protective gear because it's part of the game. Once the police determined what the list was they should have let him go. If the school wanted to make an example of him then give him a week suspension and put him on notice that it won't be tolerated maybe suspend him from the football team/ games for the rest of the year.