CNN: Girl's arrest for doodling raises concerns about zero tolerance

[Drop]

oh c'mon people...CLEARLY they were far too easy on this 12 year old girl. They obviously should have just cut both of her hands off right on the spot. That'll learn her to color on her desk with a marker that a bucket of soap and water can wash off.

seriously....some of you are really going overboard with this defacing and vandalism stuff. She's a 12 year old KID for christ sakes. You want a real punishment that fits the crime? Explain to her why what she did was wrong, and how it creates additional work for someone other than herself. Then make her scrub her desk, and a few others clean. End of story.

[polywog999]

Wow some of you must have went to fancy private schools or something. When i was in middle school everyone drew on their desk, had food fights, or whatever. Sure they would get punished but no one was ever dragged off in handcuffs. That is really freakin excessive. Its not like she was fighting or anything. Kids draw on desk in every school everywhere, it happens. I know i did multiple times.

You can't do that now-a-days or you get a stern lecture from the "morality police"... that, and "the chair."

[ThePreciating]

She defaced school property, thus breaking the law.

I wouldn't formally charge her but I bet she never draws on the desk again, her classmates won't either.

The school should have punished her. Make her wash the desks. Involving the cops for a 12 year old girl is only going to screw her up mentally. If I were her parent, she'd never go back to that school, ever.

Maybe I am just a big ol' meanie but I think she got what she deserved.If the policy was clear, what's the problem? Just another spoiled brat who thought the rules didn't apply to her and her parents suing the school will just instill that sense of entitlement further.

Wow. 12 year old girl. You live in the wrong country. Try Singapore.

[Hiro]

What if she was caught do the same thing on the bathroom wall? Or outside on a building wall next to the PE dept on school grounds?? Isn't it the same thing just in a different place??

When do you say vandalism is ok?

It depends on the context on the situation. If the person were an adult, or like even a 15-17 year teenager writing profanity or in appropriate things on a desk or wall, even then some disciplinary action such as "fix it" or "pay for the repairs" would be justified.

But this is a CHILD we are talking about here. A 12 year old, most likely prepubescent CHILD who doodled for fun. Yes she should have gotten in trouble and made to fix it. But when do you say overkill punishment is alright?

This was overkill, and I would have been furious if I were the girl's father. They have every right to take this to court.

[A Walton]

Some of you all don't have kids or it has been that long since you were 12. I can't believe that some of you think that the punishment fits the crime. WTF???

[GibbsFactor]

Dude, she wrote on a desk! You of course NEVER did anything that bad.

Dude, it's a law. What the ****?

If we are to be a land made up of laws, we must abide by them. It's how we continue to be civil. If the cops didn't put her in handcuffs and take her away in front of everyone, no lesson would be learned. Trust me, that's the only thing that will happen to her in this country in this day and age.

Is what she did a big deal? No. Is what she did illegal? Yes.

I hope none of you ever become prosecutors. Jeesh. I love how everyone thinks they are taking the moral high ground by advocating laws not be enforced.

*has an 11 year old boy*

[dockeryfan]

Maybe I am just a big ol' meanie but I think she got what she deserved.If the policy was clear, what's the problem? Just another spoiled brat who thought the rules didn't apply to her and her parents suing the school will just instill that sense of entitlement further.

Waste of time

Waste of money

no lesson actually given

If school is supposed to be about learning, this does none of that. No book learning, no common sense learning, no socialization, no discourse.

Nothing.

[Special K]

Ridiculous.

Should she have been punished for what she did? Of course. Should they have had her arrested and hauled off in handcuffs in front of her peers? I don't think so, seems very excessive to me.

I would be extremely upset if she were my daughter and that's how the school chose to handle the situations.

[MattFancy]

Dude, it's a law. What the ****?

If we are to be a land made up of laws, we must abide by them. It's how we continue to be civil. If the cops didn't put her in handcuffs and take her away in front of everyone, no lesson would be learned. Trust me, that's the only thing that will happen to her in this country in this day and age.

Is what she did a big deal? No. Is what she did illegal? Yes.

I hope none of you ever become prosecutors. Jeesh. I love how everyone thinks they are taking the moral high ground by advocating laws not be enforced.

*has an 11 year old boy*

Illegal? If she was defacing a building or something, sure. But to write your name on a desk in marker, no.

I'm not saying she should have been punished in some way, making her clean off the desks would make the most sense. But to have her arrested in the middle of class in front of all her classmates is just stupid. If your son did this, would you want him arrested and taken away in front of all his friends for writing on a desk?

[dockeryfan]

I need to start my own school if this is the lesson of the day. What a waste of effort.

[GibbsFactor]

I bet many in this thread blame cops for pulling them over when they are speeding less then 10mph on the freeway.

[MattFancy]

I bet many in this thread blame cops for pulling them over when they are speeding less then 10mph on the freeway.

So you don't break any laws? If the speed limit is 55 you do 55?

[DjTj]

Is what she did a big deal? No. Is what she did illegal? Yes.

I hope none of you ever become prosecutors. Jeesh. I love how everyone thinks they are taking the moral high ground by advocating laws not be enforced.

The law doesn't say that anyone defacing property must be put into handcuffs.

I bet many in this thread blame cops for pulling them over when they are speeding less then 10mph on the freeway.

When you get pulled over for speeding, you get a citation and pay a fine. The cops don't take you down to the station. I certainly don't see why handcuffs would be necessary.

The cops could have talked to her in the principal's office, got her name and address, and called her parents. Maybe have them pay a fine. Anything more than that is really a waste of everyone's time.

I used to write on my desk all the time. In middle school, you could actually have running conversations with whoever sat in the desk later in the day - that's what we had to do before there were Facebook walls.

One time in eighth grade, I wrote out the lyrics to the Animaniacs theme song around the edge of my desk in English class. The teacher just made me erase it. I also cleaned my share of blackboards back then, but nobody ever called the cops on me.

[The Evil Genius]

I bet many in this thread blame cops for pulling them over when they are speeding less then 10mph on the freeway.

Only if they are 12 year old girls driving.

Would the handcuffs been ok for a 5 year old that "doodled" on his desk? How about a 7 year old? 10? 11?

[polywog999]

Dude, it's a law. What the ****?

If we are to be a land made up of laws, we must abide by them. It's how we continue to be civil. If the cops didn't put her in handcuffs and take her away in front of everyone, no lesson would be learned. Trust me, that's the only thing that will happen to her in this country in this day and age.

Is what she did a big deal? No. Is what she did illegal? Yes.

I hope none of you ever become prosecutors. Jeesh. I love how everyone thinks they are taking the moral high ground by advocating laws not be enforced.

*has an 11 year old boy*

Whats worse, speeding and possibly killing someone OR writing on a desk? You are telling me you don't break the law? None of them?

Are you freaking kidding me? She's 12 years old! Most Children in this country are taken to their parents and released to their custody.

NOT TAKEN AWAY IN CUFFS! You're acting like I don't have a point here... Writing on a desk is not a crime. It's a flipping waste of everyone's time!

[GibbsFactor]

Illegal? If she was defacing a building or something, sure. But to write your name on a desk in marker, no.

I'm not saying she should have been punished in some way, making her clean off the desks would make the most sense. But to have her arrested in the middle of class in front of all her classmates is just stupid. If your son did this, would you want him arrested and taken away in front of all his friends for writing on a desk?

I just don't understand the outrage. Being handcuffed and booked is not a big deal and won't be on your record you know. It's the conviction that's the killer.

Is it excessive? Of course. Is it technically the "by the book" thing to do? Yes.

If you don't like it, write to your congressman to have them revoke vandalism laws.

But I understand from this thread that cops should only enforce laws at societies discretion.

[polywog999]

I just don't understand the outrage. Being handcuffed and booked is not a big deal and won't be on your record you know. It's the conviction that's the killer.

Is it excessive? Of course. Is it technically the "by the book" thing to do? Yes.

If you don't like it, write to your congressman to have them revoke vandalism laws.

But I understand from this thread that cops should only enforce laws at societies discretion.

Have you ever been arrested?

[HighOnHendrix]

Fascism? This has nothing to do with that. It has something to do with vandalizing property. It's the law. What good is having laws if they aren't enforced?

She'll never see the inside of a courtroom for this but the message is clear. Respect other peoples property or face the consequences.

Doesn't it? In this context Fascism is punishing someone far beyond what is reasonable, even though what they did is against the law. Hitler made it effectively against the law to be Jewish before he started taking action against them. They were only supposed to be rounded up and segregated or deported, but they took it to the next level and started killing them. But it was ok, because it's the law.

The message would have been just as clear with a lesser punishment. You may as well start handing out prison time for parking tickets. The message will be clear: Don't park in your supervisor's space, mother****er!

[MattFancy]

I just don't understand the outrage. Being handcuffed and booked is not a big deal and won't be on your record you know. It's the conviction that's the killer.

Is it excessive? Of course. Is it technically the "by the book" thing to do? Yes.

If you don't like it, write to your congressman to have them revoke vandalism laws.

But I understand from this thread that cops should only enforce laws at societies discretion.

Because it was a 12 y/o girl who wrote on a school desk! She's not out there spray painting graffiti on buildings on busting out windows. She wrote on a DESK. Why arrest her? Was she a threat to the people in the classroom? The officers? So if any kid misbehaves at school they should just be arrested? You're crazy

[GibbsFactor]

Have you ever been arrested?

I've been handcuffed and placed in the back of a car but when I told the cop that he was being excessive and I was absolutely humiliated and scarred for life, they let me go.

Is it humiliating? Yes. Is it a powerful message? Yes.

Look, if these charges aren't dropped I'd be a bit more angry but I bet they will be dropped and no harm will be done to her outside of a bit of humiliation. But again, it's a law. If you think vandalism should be dropped to a civil offense, take it up with your government.

[Special K]

I just don't understand the outrage. Being handcuffed and booked is not a big deal and won't be on your record you know. It's the conviction that's the killer.

I seriously doubt the 12 y/o views being handcuffed and arrested in front of her peers with as much ambivalence as you do.

But I understand from this thread that cops should only enforce laws at societies discretion.

No, the law doesn't mandate being handcuffed and led out of the classroom. I think that's what people are objecting to, at least I am.

[19Skins72]

What if she was caught do the same thing on the bathroom wall? Or outside on a building wall next to the PE dept on school grounds?? Isn't it the same thing just in a different place??

When do you say vandalism is ok?

You never cease to amaze me :doh:

There is no one saying it's "ok" genius, they are saying this punishment is a gross over-reaction to a common minor crime committed by almost every child that ever passed through the US school system (marker, pencil, pen w/e - you all did this at some point or age, and you damn well know it.)

This warranted detention at the very most given that she is not a repeat offender.

<edit> The miscarriage of justice here is offensive. The waste of taxpayer dollars here is offensive. The fact that some of you support this is absolutely mind boggling.

[polywog999]

I've been handcuffed and placed in the back of a car but when I told the cop that he was being excessive and I was absolutely humiliated and scarred for life, they let me go.

Is it humiliating? Yes. Is it a powerful message? Yes.

Look, if these charges aren't dropped I'd be a bit more angry but I bet they will be dropped and no harm will be done to her outside of a bit of humiliation. But again, it's a law. If you think vandalism should be dropped to a civil offense, take it up with your government.

So you were never arrested? Alrighty then! Sitting in a cop car is close, but no cigar.

This, I would imagine, did permanent damage to that girl. To say that it was no big deal shows ignorance on your behalf, as far as this subject goes, anyway. The 12 year old girl, in addition to being traumatized by the arrest, has to go to court to face charges.

P.S. I take things up with whomever I chose! Thanks for the advice, but no thanks!

[GibbsFactor]

I seriously doubt the 12 y/o views being handcuffed and arrested in front of her peers with as much ambivalence as you do.

I wouldn't assume to know.

No, the law doesn't mandate being handcuffed and led out of the classroom. I think that's what people are objecting to, at least I am.

So then it's not the schools fault but the police?

Gotcha! Just don't harm the innocent 12 year old!

[GibbsFactor]

So you were never arrested? Alrighty then! Sitting in a cop car is close, but no cigar.

This, I would imagine, did permanent damage to that girl. To say that it was no big deal shows ignorance on your behalf, as far as this subject goes, anyway. The 12 year old girl, in addition to being traumatized by the arrest, has to go to court to face charges.

P.S. I take things up with whomever I chose! Thanks for the advice, but no thanks!

Ignorance on my behalf? Because I'm not assuming if she was "permanently" damaged? No, what is permanently damaged is the desk.