A Pennsylvania school district is under fire for allegedly covering up a 12-year old student's sexual assault of a first-grader.
But instead of calling police and removing F.H., district officials covered up the attack and allowed him to remain in class, leading to the sexual assault of three more first-graders, parents say.
This and other allegations are apart of a $15 million dollar federal lawsuit against the school district. Parents are outraged and feel the alleged cover-up that allowed the student to remain in school led to the assault of three more first-graders.
Counsel for the Allentown School District argues "under the Constitution school officials cannot be held responsible simply for failing to protect youngsters from assaults by other students".
This case has led me (and maybe many others) to question how responsible ARE schools for protecting children? It seems like everyday there is news about a child bringing/using a weapon at school. What steps are schools taking to ensure children's safety?
Sure, adding metal detectors and having police officers "wand" kids before they enter, could be viewed as steps. They could also be seen as protecting faculty from students. I can't lie, I wouldn't be a teacher in this day and age for all the money in the world. The pay is too lousy to walk around wondering if the kid you failed last week is going to shoot you in the hallway.
But where does fear end and obligation begin?
I'm a bit too frazzled to get out all my thoughts on this issue. Though I don't have kids of my own, if I did, I couldn't imagine being told that their school is under no obligation to protect them. I'd have been beside myself. I could not have tolerated such as response. Apparently, neither can parents in Allentown, PA.
3 comments:
I think there are at least a couple of layers to this.
I think it makes sense to say that schools can't be held responsible if little Johnny punches little Tyreek in the face. Kids are going to do bad things, sometimes, and no reasonable measures will preclude this fact.
On the other hand, that is no excuse for the school failing to take the reasonable, and I'd imagine, legally obligated measures of informing law enforcement officials of certain types of crimes/assault.
It's not that schools are responsible for every knick on your kid's finger, but it's also not like they're free of any and all obligation.
I think the law says that, if you witness a crime, you're obligated to report it - particularly certain types of crime.
So, as far as I'm concerned, the school official(s) are responsible for the subsequent assaults, to a degree. If the school district isn't held accountable, I wouldn't be surprised if the individual school employees were.
All that said, schools need to have more security - in the form of extra eyeballs. The presence of others is often a strong deterrent to crime.
They covered up a crime. That makes them liable in my mind. I think the principal, teachers and any staff involved should be fired. It is morally reprehensible to try and cover something like that up. And if I were a parent I would definitely sue. Without a doubt.
My apologies for the tardy response. My laptop's been down. I can't imagine why or how the school thought they could coverup this degree of criminal behavior. There need to be severe consequences for such judgment. I agree with Miz JJ, the administrators involved should be fired and maybe even barred from future leadership positions.
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