Now I'll be the first to admit that I really don't know squat about the particulars of this case, but ... well ... so this kid comes to school with a handwritten list of six names. He doesn't have a weapon, didn't issue any threats, and in fact nothing actually happened at all.
So the school board suspends him. For two years.
Does this make sense to anybody? Was this stuff just always happening in America, but before the Internet I never heard about it?
What, was this kid a skinhead? the only black kid in a white neighborhood? a Skittles dealer? Was there some reason everybody was so scared of what is called a "hit list" in the article? Who can tell? Apparently the school board is so very concerned about this kid's "privacy" that they won't actually tell anyone any details.
I mean, they're all about watching out for the quality of life of kids they don't want to see at school until 2010.
Michael, have you seen this report from WGN Radio? Considering no charges have been laid, it's pretty clear that they need to talk to "law enforcement sources" that know their arse from a hole in the ground.
I had, in fact, not seen that report, and thanks for the follow-up -- yes, I agree 100% percent that these people are overstepping the boundaries here. They don't seem to have email addresses or a Web presence, but there is a contact and stats page here for anybody interested in finding out more.
I should state for the record that I agree that something probably needs to be done when some kid has enough anger that you can see it physically. But perhaps just talking to him would have been more appropriate than a freaking two-year suspension. What is the matter with these people?