New York City police have said it was a mistake to arrest a 12-year-old junior high school student and taking her out of school in handcuffs for doodling her name on her desk in erasable marker, reports the New York Daily News. Alexa Gonzalez was scribbling on her desk Monday while waiting for her Spanish teacher to pass out homework. She was led out of school in cuffs and walked to a police station across the street, where she was detained for several hours, she and her mother said.
City Education Department spokesman David Cantor said, "Based on what we've seen so far, this shouldn't have happened." Police spokesman Paul Browne said, "Even when we're asked to make an arrest, common sense should prevail, and discretion used in deciding whether an arrest or handcuffs are really necessary." A string of city students who have been cuffed for minor infractions. The New York Civil Liberties Union has sued the city for using "excessive force" in middle school and high schools. A 12-year-old sixth-grader was arrested last March for doodling on her desk.
Posted by Larry
Monday, February 22, 2010 09:21
@Indignant, no this affair most certainly has NOT been blown out of proportion. If I were the child’s parent I would have raised hell too, not to get my 15 minutes of fame but for justice to prevail and make sure such an abomination never happens again.
So the principal wasn’t consulted on handcuffing? Thanks for the 411, I assumed it was standard police procedure to ask bystanders for permission to handcuff a suspect. And I’m sure the principal nor any school staff didn’t alert the police, the cops just happened to be roaming the school hallway and caught the girl in the act, right?
And since the Police Dept. admitted they made “an error”, everything is just fine and we should let them off the hook. Too bad the girl wasn’t given a chance to admit her error…
@Lisa: the other girl was a sixth grader, most likely in a different school, and it happened six months earlier – how could she possibly have had that precedent in mind?
Posted by Indignant
Monday, February 08, 2010 01:43
This whole thing has been blown out of proportion by a glory-seeking mother who wants her 15 minutes of fame. The police made the decision to hand-cuff the child, the principal was NOT consulted. The Police Department admitted they made an error, but this admission is hidden here, in a site that not many people see.
Posted by Ethics Quote of the Week « Ethics Alarms
Monday, February 08, 2010 12:02
[…] an arrest or handcuffs are really necessary.”—-New York Police spokesman Paul Browne, admitting that it was a mistake it was a mistake to arrest a 12-year-old junior high school student and taking her out of school in […]
Posted by Lisa
Saturday, February 06, 2010 06:45
What I don’t understand is if another kid was arrested for this same thing earlier, why did THIS kid do the same thing? Is she stupid? I don’t agree that this is an appropriate response for doodling, but at the same time, it makes me wonder about the intelligence level of our youth if one would commit the exact same offense that landed another youth in jail earlier that same year—and you KNOW the kids knew about this, as this would have been big news in the schools. Idiot!
Posted by ceebee
Friday, February 05, 2010 07:25
WOW. I just can’t believe the way schools are being run these days. An arrest should happen when it’s a real serious crime like beatings, rape and murder. Not for petty things like doodling. Another example of why homeschooling is on the rise.
Posted by Hall Monitor
Friday, February 05, 2010 03:40
This story made http://detentionslip.org ! Check it out for all the crazy headlines from our schools.
Posted by Miranda
Friday, February 05, 2010 01:23
I think tht is just rediculous im sure shes embarrased enough please take her picture off of the internet she does not deserve the criticism
Posted by Peter CTI
Friday, February 05, 2010 08:56
So with the budget crisis facing america, and NY, we know which station to close first.
Tjanksfor voluntering.