News, 10-Year-Old El Paso Boy Gets $260 Ticket.

[GloryB]

Originally Posted by fabumom07

Temptation, he probably already is in therapy, but due to his brain disorder, he may act out on occasion anyhow. There should be a consequence to be sure, but the fine will not "force them " to look into anything. If he has been diagnosed Auspergers then I assure you they have looked into many avenues and are dealing with alot.

Fining parents of a brain disordered child will not "teach them", it will deplete their financial resources that are more than likely already going towards therapy, medication, etc. These unilateral fines and consequences only work for incompetent negligent parents. If a child has a mental or emotional disorder, the parents are much more likely to be trying harder than most parents anyhow, in order to manage the disorder. There will be inevitable set backs for some.

Nice post.

It would seem to me that instead of fining the parents, which just sends a real signal of not caring, the school system would meet and work with the parents so all these adults could find a way for this child to have a happier healthier life. I'm appalled at this school system. What a bunch of jerks.

[cebdark]

I don't think there's enough information in that story to truly understand what went wrong.

At any rate, the child is 10. I place emphasis on the number 10 and the word child. It doesn't seem to me that it should be that difficult to deal with this situation effectively. If he were flailing around and running the risk of hurting someone, then yes, he should be restrained and removed from the room, but a $260 misdemeanor fine? Was this the first time this child had done this? Had the school suffered from problems with this child and the parents refused to do anything to help the situation? Going by the limited info in the story, I can't conclude anything to be honest.

Quote: For disrupting class, officers at El Paso Independent School District gave her 10-year-old son a ticket for $260 and it is a Class C Misdemeanor. She said her son did not hurt anyone. Unquote

If I were to take that statement to be true, then I think it's ridiculous and "going overboard" would be an understatement. If it's not the first time it happened however, I'd say that clearly the parents need to look elsewhere for help and/or education for their son, and the school should not be held responsible for what the parents should be doing.

Quote: "It was just devastating. I was just so angry. He doesn't understand," Walka told KFOX. Unquote

IMHO, while most 10 year-olds do understand right from wrong, we don't know to what degree this child has issues; additionally, he is still a child and I continue to be amazed at how many people seem to believe that a child is capable of reasoning along a more adult level. Does he simply need a swift kick to the hind quarters, or is his medication causing him to space out to the degree that he has limited ability to control himself?

Honestly, I don't know whatever happened to common sense.

[temptation001]

Sounds like maybe the parents need to fight the ticket. Also talking to a school counselor about future options is probably best.