Teen expelled for using stun gun against bullies

[alp227]

Source: CNN

A gay teenager who pulled a stun gun on students he said bullied him has been expelled from his Indianapolis high school until January.

"While the district does not condone bullying, it also does not allow weapons to be brought on our school campuses for any reason," a spokeswoman for Indianapolis Public Schools said Tuesday. "Students who violate this rule will be held accountable."

Darnell "Dynasty" Young's mother sent her 17-year-old son to school with a stun gun because, she said, administrators didn't do enough to stop the bullying against him.

Students take part in anti-bullying programs from kindergarten through 12th grade, district spokeswoman Mary Louise Bewley said. The district also offers Gay Straight Alliance groups on multiple campuses, including Arsenal Technical High School, where Young attended, Bewley said.

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/08/us/indiana-bullied-teen/index.html

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Was Young justified in self-defense, or would his actions provide a dangerous slippery slope to schools becoming the Wild West?

[cstanleytech]

1. He deserved to be expelled

but then so do the bullys.

[The Magistrate]

3. Exactly, Sir: The Six Who Surrounded Them Should Be Expelled, Too

[Posteritatis]

12. A few people in the school who let it get to that point should be elsewhere, too. (nt)

[slackmaster]

9. Yes, expelled. And given a medal.

[Great Caesars Ghost]

2. It will get to the point where it will be fight fire with greater fire.

No doubt in my mind it will come down to the bullied kid would snap to the point where he will commit Columbine ten fold.

[rfranklin]

6. And then it will be a firefight...

I'm giving my kid an AK-47.

[DrDan]

4. the latter

[KansDem]

5. Tough call

...Young's mother sent her 17-year-old son to school with a stun gun because, she said, administrators didn't do enough to stop the bullying against him.

I would tend to think the stun gun was a little over the top, but I'll bet the bullies leave Darnell alone now!

[cstanleytech]

7. Nope, not a tough call since weapons are clearly forbidden and thats what

a stungun is albeit its not generally as lethal as pistol would be its still a weapon so he got what he deserved which was to be expelled but the school also needs to expel the bullies for their actions imo as well.

[KansDem]

8. "...the school also needs to expel the bullies for their actions imo as well."

I'm all for that!

From the article--

School police officers arrested him a short time later and took him away in handcuffs, The Indianapolis Star reported. School officials are investigating the incident, but none of the students who allegedly surrounded Young have been positively identified.

Let's see if the school follows through and identifies the bullies...and expels them.

[enki23]

17. That's a bit silly. He doesn't "deserve" to be expelled. He deserves a medal.

It may be that the school *has* to expel him, in order to maintain a consistent stance on the weapons etc. But that has nothing whatsoever to do with what the kid "deserves." The kid deserves a hug, and to get to see every one of his bullies kicked in the face. We don't all get all we deserve, sometimes. If we did, there would be a holy-shit lot of people being kicked in the face.

[cstanleytech]

19. No, silly was his mother giving him a weapon to bring to school.

I sympathize with his plight though, dont get me wrong as I to was bullied badly in school decades ago but permitting children to bring weapons isnt the solution to the problem.

[Joey Liberal]

10. I see no problem with the kid using a stun gun

I firmly believe that he has the right to defend himself from bullies. If my kid had been bullied, I would have put an end to it by visiting the parents of the bullies. I have the advantage of several years of martial arts training. So, if the parent (father) was a bully or a tough guy, that would have not been a problem. I would tell the parent that any further bullying of my kid by his kid would bring a challange to the parent from me. Perhaps an invitation to the gym/dojo would be in order. Also, I would have warned the teachers to not let bullying take place. Now, I know that a kid needs to learn to fight his/hers own battles and I feel that martial arts training (ju jitsu, Shidokan Karate, Kyokushin Karate, Krav Maga, etc) does just that. But for me, nobody was going to bully my kid.

[Posteritatis]

11. Anyone want to place bets that *anything* will happen to the bullies?

I doubt it, anyway.

Either way, if six people assault one victim I kinda think anything that happens to any of the assailants in the encounter is fair play.

[cstanleytech]

14. I to doubt much if anything will be done to them though

I do believe they deserve to be expelled for it like he was for bringing the stungun to school and threating to use it.

[tblue37]

16. Aren't stones and pieces of broken glass also "weapons"?

The buulies were assaulting the boy with weapons, so they should be punished, too.

[LarryNM]

13. Ms. Grimes should be able to take her son And Her Money out of the School

Reading the comments of the school administrators, typical amoral institution; only takes action against the victim of bullying and self defense. If "zero tolerance" is good for the school then it is good for the student. Expel the School (District).

[bongbong]

15. Where's the NRA when you need 'em???

This seems tailor-made for their brand of wild-west love.

Wait, he was gay, that doesn't fit the NRA conservative agenda. Sorry.

[alp227]

18. plus, he was using a stun gun, not a rifle! Can't cut into the rifle makers' profits like that!

[riderinthestorm]

20. The school deserves all the criticism. They failed to provide a safe environment for this teen

They looked away and didn't take action to protect him even after the family brought the bullying to their attention.

I see nothing wrong with the story. That kid was a statistic waiting to happen - another story of a gay teen beaten so severely or even suicide. The school failed in their responsibility to provide a safe learning environment. Period.

My niece has been bullied her entire life (she's a senior now). I know first hand that the schools don't do enough to deal with bullying. In some cases, they honestly don't know who has done it since it can be really devious (who tripped her so she fell and broke her arm in gym? who put the used tampon in her lunch?) In her junior year she finally started carrying pepper spray to school after 9 years of school administrators, including the superintendent, doing nothing to help her.

My niece isn't even going to her high school graduation. She absolutely refuses to be with these kids even one more single day than she has to - its been that miserable. She vows to never set foot on another school campus again in her life. I blame the school administrators and teachers 100% for that.

[On the Road]

21. If the Schools Can't Control Bullying

some red states might start to pass laws allowing concealed carry at schools under the guise of constitutional rights. That would be fun. There is actually a better self-defense argument than in most situations.

[Grace Moore]

22. He deserved to be expelled

He deserved to be expelled, but the school also needs to suspend the bullies for their actions. Kids who bully should be suspended for weeks or longer, to have the parents be responsible for their actions and education. I never bullied anyone in school and no one bullied me, but kids today are different. Here are usually the reasons by which a student may be expelled by the school.

[linicx]

23. There are four sides ...

The four sides to every story are: his, hers, right, and wrong.

Way back in the Ice Age when I went to school "troublemakers" were expelled. It was private and not an issue for public consumption. They could not return to the same school, but they were not prevented from attending another school.

We have a situation where all sides were wrong. The mother was wrong, her son was wrong, the bullies were wrong and so was the school administration. The solution is simple. While the cops separate and sort out what citation is assessed and to whom, the state should step in an do three things.
#1: Take control of the school.
#2: REMOVE and REPLACE all persons in an administrative position to restore order to a school obviously out of control.
#3: Determine who among the teachers and admin turned the blind-eye to allow THUGS to set school policy and micromanage the school?

I would certainly want to know why the School District Superintendent and School Boars pretended to be Rip Van Winkle, swept it under the rug and acted like the Three Monkeys?

After this Humpty Dumpty is put back together by the state, it should be a properly managed environment where students can learn, and not fear their peers.