Another case of zero tolerance…
by CmdrFenix on Oct.15, 2009, under General
I have mentioned and talked about Marie Morrow in Aurora, CO before. See is the commander of the school drill team, a model student, and is also facing expulsion for a school’s zero tolerance policy.
Marie Morrow is likely to find out today whether she will be expelled from school for having fake rifles used as props in a youth marine group on school grounds.
The 17-year-old Cherokee Trail High School senior was suspended Feb. 5 after other students saw the props in her vehicle and notified school officials.
They weren’t even real and they were used in a school function!
Colorado has a “zero-tolerance” law when it comes to guns on school campuses, and even a facsimile of a gun or rifle that looks real is considered a dangerous weapon.
They also have a zero brain policy. Laws are there to protect people and punish those will mal-intent, but it seems they are also being exercised to ensnare and punish people who make innocent mistakes.
Zachary Christie is a all around good 6 year old boy. He just joined the cub scouts and got a camping spoon, fork, and knife combo unit and was so excited he brought it to school to eat at lunch with. OK, so the kid made a mistake. Take it away, give it to parents, and maybe have a meeting with them. Something reasonable right?
Zachary’s offense? Taking a camping utensil that can serve as a knife, fork and spoon to school. He was so excited about recently joining the Cub Scouts that he wanted to use it at lunch. School officials concluded that he had violated their zero-tolerance policy on weapons, and Zachary was suspended and now faces 45 days in the district’s reform school.
In many way, this term “zero tolerance” seems to be a blanket excuse to prevent school administrators and anyone else from using their brain. I don’t want to have to make a mistake and try and determine intent here so I’m going wear my “zero tolerance” hat. Well, I’m sorry, but school administrators here need to start smartening (ironic for where they work) and try and bring some wisdom into their descisions.
October 16th, 2009 on 12:58 pm
Agree. Dumbness abounds. There were issues semi-recently here in NH of a high school JROTC unit using welded-block M1s as drill rifles, and a few locals threw a fit. Luckily, sanity prevailed in that case, but there -are- occasions (as you mention here) where the “zero tolerance” is .. well .. clearly not understood by the people who are choosing to “enforce” it … serious weaksauce.