Friday, April 27, 2007

A moron in Illinois

An 18-year-old student at an Illinois school is facing disorderly conduct charges for writing an essay that the authorities described as violent and disturbing.

Allen Lee, a student at Cary-Grove High School, was arrested on Monday after completing the essay. “At the very last sentence, I said that this teacher’s method of teaching could lead to a school shooting,” Mr Lee said yesterday. He said that he had intended the essay as a joke.

After reading the piece his teacher alerted the school’s head, and district officials reported it to the police.

“The writing assignment depicted violence, was disturbing and inappropriate” Ron Delelio, the Cary police chief, said. The police have declined to release a copy of the essay.

Mr Lee has been removed from the school and now faces disciplinary action.
The Times.

Arrested for making a joke in an essay?

What's happening here, I think, is that the teacher, then the police, are playing safe. If this kid subsequently shot up his school and the media frenzy turned up the essay in question, there'd be hell to pay.

There is absolutely no way to predict which person might commit the next such crime. Get used to it. And stop persecuting kids.

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