The Pink Flamingo :: Girl Arrested for Bringing Knife to School

I just heard from school board member Steven Hering, who is to be commended for responding to my email. "You might want to direct your mail to either law enforcement or the state attorney. They are the ones that arrested or pressed charges against the child."

The Sword of Achilles has an absolutely disgusting story of zero tolerance gone wild, and an excellent commentary on how school officials are promoting the degradation of civilized society. The child, using a knife for cutting her food the way civilized individuals have been want to do for several thousand years was then arrested and sent to juvenile lock-up. She is now facing felony charges for cutting up her food.

I do hope her parents sue the you know what out of the whole system. The 10 year old girl, obviously knowing how to use proper table manners brought a steak with her for lunch, and a steak knife. Two teachers, quaking in their cowardly boots, afraid she would go insane and stab them, called the cops.

“….School officials say the 5th grader was brown-bagging it. She brought a piece of steak for her lunch, but she also brought a steak knife. That's when deputies were called. It happened in the cafeteria at Sunrise Elementary School. The 10-year-old used the knife to cut the meat. "She did not use it inappropriately. She did not threaten anyone with it. She didn't pull it out and brandish it. Nothing of that nature," explained Marion County School Spokesman Kevin Christian. But a couple of teachers took the utensil and called the sheriff. When deputies arrived, they were unable to get the child's parents on the phone, so they arrested her and took her to the county's juvenile assessment center. "And we didn't handcuff her or treat her like a criminal. But, we took her to the assessment center to be assessed," said Capt. James Pogue, Marion County Sheriff's Office. School officials said it doesn't matter what the knife was being used for. They said they had no choice. "Anytime there's a weapon on campus, yes, we have to report it and we aggressively report it because we don't want to take any chances, regardless," Christian said. But the sheriff's office said the extreme measures in what some may say was a harmless incident had to do with school policy, not theirs. "But once we're notified, we have to take some type of action," Pogue explained. The student now faces a felony charge for the possession of a weapon on school property and the principal suspended her for ten days. The parents of the girl could not be reached for comment….’

THE SCHOOL
Sunrise Elementary in Ocala, Florida.

TRAUMATIZED CHILD
The child, obviously a good child, is traumatized over the whole affair.

“…The Sunrise Elementary School student, who was not identified because of her age, used the knife to cut her steak during lunchtime Thursday. Teachers took it from her and called deputies. She was taken to the Juvenile Assessment Center, Marion County Sheriff's Capt. Mike Rolls said. Her uncle, Kenneth Thomas, told the Orlando Sentinel his niece was devastated over the arrest. "We do understand there needs to be measures taken to make sure people don't come to school with weapons in light of what has happened at schools over the past years, he said. "But she's a really good kid. She was crying her eyes out."…”

Read the comments from the Orlando Sentinel

Wizbang has the information we need to contact the school officials:

“…Sunrise Elementary School 375 Marion Oaks Course Ocala, FL 34473 Phone: (352) 671-6200  Fax: (352) 671-6206 (800) 955-8770 (FRS) (800) 955-8771 (TTY)  Isaac.BurgessIV@marion.k12.fl.us
Marion County School board contacts 
Voice 352-671-7703
School Chairperson Judi Zanetti 352-671-7995 Judith.Zanetti@marion.k12.fl.us
 Steve Hering (352)245-4146 Steven.Hering@marion.k12.fl.us
Vice Chair Bobby L. James (352) 427-3781 Bobby.James@marion.k12.fl.us
 Sue Mosley (352)624-1875 Sue.Mosley@marion.k12.fl.us
 Ron Crawford 352)591-0356 Ron.Crawford@marion.k12.fl.us

The people responsible for jailing the 10-year-old, need to be made into laughingstocks. Harrassing these idiots for a start, I think is only justified. They need to see what an outrageous mistake was made at Sunrise Elementary School, and make sure it never happens again….”

High Science

MY LETTER
It is quite rare that I contact an organization after reading a news story, but the Sunrise Elementary School tale of the 10 year old girl who was arrested for PROPERLY using good manners and knowing how to eat with manners by cutting a steak with a knife is the worst thing I’ve heard in ages. I trust voters in Marion County and in your school district will have the common sense to consider a recall vote for anyone who insists this traumatic and vile abuse of power continues.

Zero tolerance is one thing, but destroying an innocent child for using good manners is nothing less than criminal. We live in a world where civilized behavior is rapidly breaking down to the point where today’s school children are little more than pack animals. I blame most of this on cowardly administrators who are so busy implementing zero tolerance and so lacking in common sense for most of this. Another problem is school administrators, officials, and “educators” who cower in the face of law-suits.

I trust and pray this family will be filing a lawsuit against the teachers involved, the school system, the local police and each and every member of the school board who is going along with this travesty of justice and break down of civilized behavior. When a legal defense fund is set up for them I will be contributing.

I am also distributing this email on my blog, The Pink Flamingo, along with email address. I have never done this, but pray my readers will be following my lead. I gather Marion County school children are also not allowed to say Merry Christmas, Christ, or pray in class.

Have a Merry Christmas;
SJ Reidhead
The Pink Flamingo

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