Student Arrested For Doing Homework

[DeSwiss]

SOURCE: Chicago Tribune

Student Writes Essay, Arrested By Police

By Jeff Long and Carolyn Starks
Tribune staff reporters
Published April 26, 2007

High school senior Allen Lee sat down with his creative writing class on Monday and penned an essay that so disturbed his teacher, school administrators and police that he was charged with disorderly conduct.

"I understand what happened recently at Virginia Tech," said the teen's father, Albert Lee, referring to last week's massacre of 32 students by gunman Seung-Hui Cho. "I understand the situation." But he added: "I don't see how somebody can get charged by writing in their homework. The teacher asked them to express themselves, and he followed instructions."

Allen Lee, an 18-year-old straight-A student at Cary-Grove High School, was arrested Tuesday near his home and charged with disorderly conduct for an essay police described as violently disturbing but not directed toward any specific person or location. The youth's father said his son was not suspended or expelled but was forced to attend classes elsewhere for now.

Today, Cary-Grove students rallied behind the arrested teen by organizing a petition drive to let him back in their school. They posted on walls quotes from the English teacher in which she had encouraged students to express their emotions through writing. "I'm not going to lie. I signed the petition," said senior James Gitzinger. "But I can understand where the administration is coming from. I think I would react the same way if I was a teacher."

Cary Police Chief Ron Delelio said the charge was appropriate even though the essay was not published or posted for public viewing. Disorderly conduct, which carries a penalty of 30 days in jail and a $1,500 fine, is filed for pranks such as pulling a fire alarm or dialing 911. But it can also apply when someone's writings can disturb an individual, Delelio said. "The teacher was alarmed and disturbed by the content," he said.

But a civil rights advocate said the teacher's reaction to an essay shouldn't make it a crime. "One of the elements is that some sort of disorder or disruption is created," said Ed Yohnka, a spokesman for the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois. "When something is done in private—when a paper is handed in to a teacher—there isn't a disruption."

more: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-070425essay,1,696682.story?ctrack=1&cset=true

*** - "Yes Ms. Johnson, I completed my paper, but I'm afraid to turn it in. Instead of an "A" I could get 5 to 10........"

[Dogmudgeon]

1. I didn't think the laws in Illinois were there to prevent disorder ...

... but rather, to preserve disorder.

That's what Mayor Daley once said.

--p!
Famously.

[Bjornsdotter]

2. As I've stated before...

....this is a local story for me, not my district but close.

Read this article and note the 4th sentence from the end....

http://www.nwherald.com/articles/2007/04/26/news/local/doc4630304f12dd7798473383.txt

<<About six weeks ago, Emling said he gave a 10-minute speech in the same class describing what his life would be like as a “hit-man” and identified students he would shoot. He said he was not punished for that speech.>>

Also towards the end of the comments are two posts from the student Allen Lee.

IMO....if this kid wasn't Asian, this wouldn't have happened in this way.

Cheers

[Art_from_Ark]

3. If they had arrested students at my high school for such a thing

half of the students would have ended up in the pokey.

[regnaD kciN]

7. Forget High School...

...in my elementary school, at least half my kindergarten class would have been in juvenile detention for our near-daily renditions of Mine Eyes Have Seen The Glory Of The Burning Of The School.

Of course, back then, no students, whether in elementary or high school, had come to class armed to the teeth and blown away a dozen or more kids. Even the University of Texas sniper incident was years away. Who's to say what the administration's reaction would have been in a post-Columbine atmosphere?

[LiberalFighter]

9. We did that song back in the 60's in grade school -parochial

[badgerpup]

4. What would have happened...

...if the teacher had sat the kid down with his parents (who are apparently interested in how their child is doing in school) and said "Look. I asked for an essay and received this, and am very disturbed by it. I think we need to talk about it." ?

Is it just me, or are people less willing to stop and try to solve a problem rather than just going off the deep end?
In a lot of the stories I see here, there is little or no attempt at...I guess you might term it negotiation?

It's action, big damn overresponse, call in the media.
:banghead:

[DeSwiss]

5. Its the lawyers....

...and its gotten to the point where contingency responses are all the rage in public institutions now. Particularly schools. I saw another article today where a Charleston NC high school principal detailed specific dances that would not be allowed at the prom. He made every student attending sign a statement that they read the description of the prohibited dances and would not do them. I have little doubt that lawyers were involved....

excerpt: "Any variation of dancing that approximates the following is expressly prohibited: A student (male or female) bent over at the waist with the pelvis of another individual (male or female) pressed against their buttocks while holding (or not holding onto) the bent over student’s waist or hips is prohibited at all times at functions at Capital High School where dancing is permitted."

link: http://www.wvgazette.com/section/News/2007042512

[madmom]

6. this reminds me of something that happened when my son was little

his teacher called me in for a conference, she was worried because all his drawing lately have been in black crayon.When asked about it, he said that's all he had, all the others broke and he threw them away. So So simple!:banghead:

[regnaD kciN]

8. Look, it's not all that surprising...

Consider that, if this student had pulled a Cho next month, the media would have been up in arms about how the administration knew this kid was dangerous, and didn't protect the rest of the students by having him arrested and/or institutionalized. Even calling the kid and his parents in for a conference, as suggested here, would have been judged a criminally-insufficient response.

The fact is that, after Columbine, I would think any principal would choose to take a "zero-tolerance" line on this matter. That it happened so soon after VT only amplified the near-certainty of that response.

[OKCandHouston]

10. so then our rights are subject to;...

...interpretation and suppression depending upon the criminal-of-the-month club?

Get real. Merely writing about something is not a crime.

[DangerDave921]

12. Not a crime

But the school is in a tough spot after VA Tech. All the media for weeks was digging into warning signs, including school papers/plays the guy wrote that had disturbing and violent images. So now we get a HS student writing a disturbing essay soon after the massacre. Of course the teacher had to take SOME action. To ignore such a thing would be a disservice to the rest of the school.

[Mythsaje]

11. WTF?

Thought crime anyone?

[Quantess]

13. Yes, and American youth are learning this lesson early.

This would be far less likely to happen to an adult in college. College age is already too old to and too savvy to train.

[formerfed]

14. Don't forget about....

Don't forget about the whole class of 3rd graders who were recently lined up against the wall and physically searched by 4 teachers looking for an alleged five dollars that was missing.

When one teacher found a candybar in a child's backpack he ate it right in front of the kid to teach them a lesson???