Remember when you were in high school, and if you didn't do what your teacher told you to do, you were sent to the office, where in all likelihood you would get a detention?
That's not how it went down in a classroom in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. A 14-year old girl was texting during a math exam. The teacher asked her to stop, which she ignored. Instead of being sent to the office, the girl was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct.
Do you recall the story in '05 about the 11-year-old sixth-grade student in Florida who was handcuffed and arrested for third degree weapon possession?
Prosecutors are getting into the mix too. Recently, three high school girls in Pennsylvania who sent racy photos (and four male students who received them) were all hit with child pornography charges.
Why are our kids being arrested and /or charged with serious felonies instead of being reprimanded by authority figures and their parents? That's what's supposed to happen.
- Ground them, don't arrest them.
- Suspend them, or give them detention, don't call the authorities.
- Take away their cellphones. Take away their computer, don't charge them with a felony.
When you go to Merriam-Webster, a "kid" is defined as: a young person ; especially : child —often used as a generalized reference to one especially younger or less experienced.
Isn't it more sensible for parents and school officials to punish kids rather than criminalize them?
Geez, poor kids.
- Mary-Lynn
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