<p>goaliedad-I was actually citing the NY State penal code as I am a former prosecutor in the state. I was merely trying to explain why the highest count in this instance was charged as a misdemeanor. </p>
<p>Throwing someone out a third floor window would undoubtedly result in a felony charge. “1. With intent to cause serious physical injury to another person, he causes such injury to such person or to a third person;” NY State Penal Law Section 120.05 One could surmise that a person who threw another out a third floor window would be intending to cause serious physical injury.</p>
<p>Do you think they can add the hate crime (article 485) finding to the charge since they were calling him “terrorist” because of his ethnicity (or their mistaken understanding of it)? Pardon my lack of knowledge on NY rules, but does that raise the Misdemeanor A Assault to a low level Felony by raising it one level?</p>
<p>NY has a storied history of prosecutors making a name for themselves in prosecuting newsworthy cases. My suggestion of people wanting to bury the story is due to a lack of creativity in this prosecutor’s approach based upon this weak prosecution. I smell something rotten. </p>
<p>I will admit, there seems to be something missing in NY statutes with regards to the physical damage to an individual when determining the severity of an assault charge.</p>
<p>Beating on someone with a branch is harrassment?!! I must not have any understanding of the court system here…I thought the Probation Dept handled probation AFTER sentencing by a judge! Does anyone else think they’re missing a step here? Ugh…as predicted, it doesn’t sound like this will be sending much of a message to other potential bullies out there. I know the kids are young, but there is a school nearby where they attempt to educate behavior-challenged kids who commit far less serious offenses. These four should at least be moved into that program, which would allow young Saro to return to his school without having to deal with them on a daily basis. I wonder if the family can, or would, petition for a restraining order for him.</p>
<p>The school district has sent a letter to parents stating that all students involved, directly and indirectly, have received appropriate punishments (no details given). The superintendent said yesterday that he believes that some parents were aware that the bullying was occurring but didn’t report it to the school…which could just be a convenient way to give the district a pass but is possibly a back-handed attempt to blame the victim if this is in reference to Mrs. Danadian’s earlier statement about suspecting bullying when her son came home with broken glasses.</p>
<p>In this piece, the superintendent says the school will be “conferencing” with the offenders (who apparently had only a 3 day suspension) and “potentially” the parents, with mediation if necessary. Story says that Saro will apparently be in a wheelchair for several months and he feels that his attackers should have been expelled. Judging from comments posted to the news site by parents in Oneida, they think so too and one parent says that kids are even more afraid of the bullies now…how sad for all of the kids in that school.</p>
<p>The only good news is that he looks like he’s feeling much better…no sign of mom in the video clip, hopefully she’s off getting some rest!</p>
<p>As a seventh grade girl, I was beaten on the playground by a boy with a 2x4. The police went over to his house to talk to his parents, and as for the school I ended up being the one who got punished until lawyers became involved and we got a new assistant principal. I am not surprised by anything anymore.</p>
<p>A three day suspension? Dear God, what is wrong with this school system? Shame on them. Some years ago there was a major cheating scandal in our school district - the perpetrators, hs seniors, were initially charged with felonies and were permanently suspended from school. The reason they weren’t expelled, parents were told, was because expulsion required physical violence. (Please don’t ask me what the difference between permanent suspension and expulsion is - apparently there’s gotta be one.)</p>
<p>How can the serious acts these boys committed be punished with “conferencing” following a 3-day suspension? I’m usually a bit skeptical when people cry “preferential treatment,” but that is in blazing full view here. If the perpetrators’ parents are indeed taking advantage of their prestige in the community to shield their sons from the full consequences of their actions, they should be shunned. If the father of one is indeed a New York state senator, as has been hinted in various news sources, I’d like to know which one. How many more people will these boys hurt because their parents have taught them that they don’t need to take the consequences of their actions?</p>
<p>sk8termom, how is the local community reacting? Will district residents mount a challenge - ask the board or superintendent for more appropriate punishment or at least an investigation of school policies?</p>
<p>Well, we have some school districts throwing kids out if they bring a 1 inch G.I. Joe toy to school and now we have one that gives only a three day suspension for breaking someone’s leg. If only there were a way to breed the two together, maybe the next generation would be a school district with some sense.</p>
<p>Well, anyone can google NYS Senator + Oneida…if you know the family, I doubt you’ll be surprised.</p>
<p>I’m several districts removed from Oneida and probably won’t hear much this weekend about it…I’m not sure if the parents have even received their letters yet. I would hope the next school board meeting is VERY well attended! Ugh, I need to think about something else anyway…it just makes me so upset that our schools and judicial system don’t take these crimes seriously! </p>
<p>I can just imagine what kind of emotional scars Ema and others have been left with. A few years back, I was subjected to rather severe harassment in the workplace by a group of thugs…it got so bad that I eventually couldn’t sleep, lost 20 pounds, and had to go to therapy! Even after I transferred to a different location and they were fired (which was not easy, due to union rules), I still had anxiety attacks and, to this day, feel light-headed if I catch even a glimpse of any of them out in the community. If I developed this problem as an adult, with no serious physical injuries, I can only imagine what problems kids who are beaten up to the extent that they require surgery will wind up with!</p>
<p>Agree with frazzled-
A 3 day suspension is ridiculous. A slap on the wrist for a violent assault. No wait-- “alleged” bullying. Where I live, bringing a plastic knife to cut a birthday cake, or havaing a wallet with a small chain and clasp to attach to a belt loop can get you a 3 day suspension. This is an insult to the kid and his family. So what that it wasn’t officially on school property.As said above, it was at the school busstop. This was, IMO, as school-related activity, just as if it had happened at a hotel where kids were staying for a school sponsored extra curricular activity.</p>
<p>Jym, you reminded me of a suspension my youngest son received as a FIRST grader! He loved to whittle and carve things (supervised, of course) and my dad had given him a pocket knife for his birthday. He decided to take it in for show and tell, without permission, and showed it to his buddy on the bus. Needless to say, I got a call from the principal and he was suspended for two days and lost bus privileges for a week! I thought it was a bit ridic, as he clearly had no intention of hurting anyone and had even brought a few of his carvings to show too. But, I didn’t argue about it and let him do the time because I thought it was more important for him to learn that following school rules is not optional. I’m sure he’s bent a few rules since then but, afaik, none have been broken!</p>
<p>Wow sk8trmom!! First grade!! I am impressed!! LOL. We have had similar stories where I live. One kid had a paintball gun (not officially considered a “gun”) in his car to go to an event after school, and they tried to suspend him for having a weapon in his car. Lots of stories about kids who have forgotten and had hunting gear in the trunks of their car and gotten suspended when someone saw it. Oh-- and this was a classic-- mother sends a holiday gift to her son’s elementary school teacher. He transports it to school for the teacher. It was a bottle of wine!! You can guess where this is going… Note to parents for holiday gift ideas: Send cookies, send notepads, send aromatherapy eye shields. Do NOT send wine.</p>
<p>Haha…my mom was an elementary school teacher and I’m sure she would have loved to get some wine! What do you bet the principal slipped the confiscated one to the teacher?:)</p>
<p>The community could do something about this if they really wanted to. The Amish have the right idea. Suppose the families of the attackers (the term “bullying” has become too diluted for my taste) were shunned by the community for six months or so? Maybe the parents would get the message, and convey the message to their children.</p>
<p>I’d be very tempted to file a complaint with the Office of Civil Rights and to also see if the local ACLU is willing to get involved. At this level of injury, the perpetrator should not be allowed back in that school building for the remainder of the school year.</p>
<p>I just came across this thread … how absolutely disgusting. Wow.</p>
<p>My friend’s son was bullied throughout elementary school. His mom tried talking to the teacher & principal, but nothing ever came of it. Eventually, in fifth grade, her son got tired of being picked on & ended up getting caught with his hands around the neck of a kid who constantly taunted him (the bully was far more savvy about how to get away with things than my friend’s son, obviously). Friend’s son was suspended, which friend considered appropriate, figuring that while she understood his response he did have to be disciplined for his choice. However, the bully wasn’t even reprimanded … according to the school, there was no proof he had done anything. My friend quit her job and never sent her son back to that school. Instead, she home schooled him until he was in high school & then sent him to a small, nurturing parochial school. To this day, my friend feels sorry for the bully, figuring he learned a very twisted lesson that did not serve him well.</p>
<p>I recall a boy in elementary school who was beaten up regularly. The school’s solution was to have him leave 10 or 15 minutes early so that he could get a head start on the bullies. I remember feeling so bad for him, and I often told my kids that story as they were growing up. I am happy to report that my kids were always kind & stood up for others who were being picked on - my son sometimes complained that being nice drew weird kids to him, but he survived. I truly believe that most kids can be taught not to bully & to stand up against bullying, so I am glad to see efforts being made to this end. But schools MUST punish those who bully in order for the efforts to pay off.</p>
<p>Kelsmom, your kids sound like the kind of kids who can truly influence others in a positive way. Kudos to you for encouraging that! I’m always impressed by kids who are confident enough that they’ll risk their own “stature” to shield, or even elevate, another. I think this is the most effective anti-bullying strategy out there since nothing beats peer influence in schools. I wish there were more parents who did that, and that we could figure out how to make it universally cool to be kind.</p>
<p>I have observed and questioned my kids pretty carefully over the years about how kids are treated in our schools. Bullying seems to be a fact of life on the elementary school buses, but that is probably due to the K-6 composition and the immaturity of the “top dogs”, who are only 10-11 years old. It never escalates beyond a punch or shove. S tells me that the bullying in middle and high school is mostly done among the less popular, weaker kids…jockeying for position in the same pack, as it were, but rarely physically engaging each other…and a few “mean kids” that just have always been bullies. Those are the ones to watch out for apparently, as they love to engineer sneak attacks on their targets (like the kids in the Oneida story). </p>
<p>S and his close friends, male and female, are the athlete crowd and have “adopted” most of the truly weaker kids, including the physically or mentally impaired, and the other kids will not even speak unkindly of them within earshot. I have seen the “mean kids” back down from even teasing someone when given a look by S…though they certainly weren’t deterred by the presence of a teacher and a parent! As S says, “people just know I don’t like that c–p”. He said he’s never had to actually demonstrate the lengths he would go to protect his little buddies other than a few “accidental” bumps in the hallway and gym class (well, maybe they were checks…he is a hockey player) and ignoring the perpetrators for awhile, which has a detrimental effect on their little social lives. I asked S, who is a senior, what will happen next year when he and his buddies have graduated and he said he has it covered…they’ve been grooming the sophomores and juniors on his teams to “stand up”. </p>
<p>Imho, we need to find a way to recruit the “stand up” kids to initiate, or at least lend their approval to, any formal anti-bullying campaigns if they are going to be of any real use in dealing with teenagers. Do any other parents think your kid would be willing to participate in such an endeavor at a grass-roots level?</p>