They would have arrested them all, not just the kid that did speak up.
But @intparent - that’s what I’m saying - that’s wrong! Have we really taught our kids to blindly obey authority to that degree?
I’m not saying they should physically interfere. But wow.
In their defense, they did film the episode. There are multiple videos now online, showing the event from different angles. They are also talking with reporters.
But I see your point. Get arrested, get expelled, show up here on CC asking if you have to disclose that on your college apps. It all snow balls out of control. Most people can’t afford lawyers to fight this stuff.
“What I’m blaming is a society where this is OK, or at least not so shocking that people aren’t screaming or something.”
I find the police officers conduct appalling. However to say it is shocking for the kids in the classroom to not get involved is going too far… Back in the 70’s we had a kid in our high school math class who was a jerk. One day the teacher had enough he grabbed the kid by the neck, dragged him over to the classroom door and slammed the kids head into the door 3 times. Then he hauled him down to the principals office. There were over 30 kids in the class and none of us said anything. There was no way we were going to get in the middle of it… I don’t blame the kids in this classroom at all.
You can’t have it both ways. You can’t tell kids they have to / should intervene when they see a "bad"cop misbehave and protect the innocent (girl, in this case) but also respect authority and just do what the police say so you aren’t to blame when you are beaten / shot /tasered. Which is it? I would hate to see what happened if, say, the black guy in the front of the class made a move to protect the girl. He probably knew he was helpless.
Also, a girl did speak up. The officer screamed at her and threatened to arrest her.
People who can’t tolerate obnoxious/disrespectful teens have no business working in a high school in any capacity.
I’m not trying to have it both ways. I’m just reacting to a terrible situation and wondering like everyone else is. It makes me sad.
And I sure don’t blame the kids. My point is more societal. That we need cops in schools now is sad.
Just like it’s abusive to watch your parent beat the crap out of another parent, is it not abusive to watch someone in authority slam someone in a chair to the ground?
And to have to sit there with no reaction for fear of getting in trouble? Or if you do react, you’re in trouble?
The whole thing just absolutely sucks.
Sorry I don’t word it well enough for everyone at CC.
I’m still trying to figure out what she’s charged with. “Disturbing a classroom” is what every news report says. That does not sound like a real charge.
The news keeps showing the former officer powerlifting. I wonder if he uses illegal steroids. There is no excuse for him performing that way. He really shouldn’t have been there in the first place. Truthfully if he were a valuable performer in the police department he would not be assigned as a school resource officer.
I wonder if teacher should have evacuated the whole classroom and just let the girl sit there by herself. There are teachers on this site. How would you all have dealt with a disorderly student?. I know she’s just sitting in the video but apparently she was yelling and disrupting the class earlier. What would you do?
Yes, you should absolutely teach your kids not to interfere with a cop under any circumstances. Even if the cop is beating the heck out of somebody, stand back and film it but don’t approach or talk to the cop.
If you don’t like it, then you need to talk to your politicians about changing the law. Because interfering with a cop is illegal. If you don’t like it, it’s on you as an adult to advocate for change. Don’t put it on kids to break rules and laws that adults put in place.
Why do you think there were kids videotaping the incident? One of the girls told the others to start videoing - they knew there was a strong possibility this guy would go overboard. The kids were doing what they could in a no-win situation.
Someone on my FB feed just shared this.
http://www.theroot.com/blogs/the_grapevine/2015/10/sc_teen_assaulted_by_officer_is_a_recent_orphan.html
Apparently the girl just lost her mother and grandmother, and was placed in a foster home.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/king-s-teen-assaulted-deputy-orphan-article-1.2414901
Again, I would never suggest that a teenager interfere with a cop. My reaction (if the above is addressed to me) is how the kids on the video looked while an unarmed person was getting body-slammed to the floor.
@SouthFloridaMom …“That we need cops in schools now is sad.”
Sadly we do. And schools need to be locked at all times. Last week in Richmond in one of the nicer newer elementary schools a mother went into the school and assaulted her daughter’s KINDERGARTIN teacher. The teacher was hospitalized and the follow up today says the teacher is in her second year of teaching and has not returned to school. The assailant/parent was taken for a mental health evaluation.
I was really glad one of the girls had the presence of mind to video the incident - wish we could give her a journalism award!
Wow. 
That is terrible.
It’s weird for me because I’m usually pretty pro law enforcement.
I just have a soft spot for students and education in general. I hate to see our schools turned into prison-like atmospheres.
I find this whole situation to be pathetic…from start to finish. Plenty of blame to go around on all fronts. Both of my parents and both of my in-laws are retired school teachers, and I find the actions of everyone involved in this fiasco to be completely unacceptable.
- The student: This student's behavior in the classroom was atrocious. Her immature and disruptive behavior affects the entire classroom, and particularly any student who was actually there wanting to learn something. Her failure to comply with the teachers, then the administrators, then the liaison officer was flat wrong and her role in the escalation that followed should not be overlooked. Shame on her.
- The teacher/administrators: Their inability to handle the situation without bringing in a law enforcement liaison officer is laughable. Once the student refused to leave the classroom willingly, all it would've taken is 2 adults to remove her desk from the classroom and place her in the hallway. If she resisted the movement of her desk, 2 male adults with even nominal strength could've lifted the desk and carried it out of the classroom. I've seen this done in my own school experience, and all of my parents/in-laws have seen it done or even participated in it. Disruptive student removed without laying a hand on her, and situation defused.
But since they failed to defuse it properly and called in the liaison officer…
- The policeman: Absolutely no excuse for the level of physicality he exhibited. None. I am VERY pro-police in most situations, but there's no scenario I see here that warrants his level of escalation. I don't like to see anyone lose their livelihood, but I think the Sheriff acted properly in dismissing the officer.
- Any media/individuals who immediately start a narrative that this was a racially motivated event: While the actions of the officer were unacceptable and have been dealt with accordingly, those that immediately jump to the conclusion that this was a racial event display their own bias and do more harm than good. If and when a more thorough investigation is completed and a racial motivation is proven/disproved, then the appropriate level of additional outrage should be discussed. From what I've seen, this officer has one previous complaint with racial overtones against him, but that lawsuit has not been heard yet and there's nothing definitive one way or the other. At this point, claiming this was racially motivated is just as premature as saying it was sexually motivated simply because he is male and she is female. Let the investigation play out and make a determination based on facts...not personal biases or desire to fan the flames.
I heard on the news tonight that the girl is being charged with resisting arrest and disorderly conduct, iirc. WTH?!?