This is wild - and in Alabama of all places!
Kid gets suspended for using finger guns at recess?! That's the most outrageous thing I've ever heard of, like, aren't kids allowed to have fun anymore?
Jerrod Belcher, whose six-year-old son J.B. attends Bagley Elementary School in Jefferson County, Alabama, says the school over-reacted to a game of "cops and robbers." A notice of suspension shared with Fox News Digital states that Belcher's son committed a "Class III" infraction on September 1 by "using his fingers to shoot at another student."
"By using his fingers to shoot another student."
Do they realize how dumb that sounds?
They even suspended the other student who was playing the game with J.B.
Here's what the school points to in their suspension notice:
The suspension notice states that J.B. committed a "3.22 Threat" infraction. According to the Student and Parent Handbook for Bagley Elementary, Article 3.22 is "THREAT / INTIMIDATION (OF STUDENT)." Potential violations include "A threat to do serious bodily harm or violence to another student by word or act, cyber bullying, or intimidation that may induce fear into another." Examples given are "a threat to kill, maim, or inflict serious harm; a threat to inflict harm involving the use of any weapon, explosive, firearm, knife, prohibited object, or other object which may be perceived by the individual being threatened as capable of inflicting bodily harm."
Bro, they were playing a make-believe game!
You think he really meant this as a threat?
A threat right up there with all these things:
The letter observes that "Class III" infractions are categorized as a "major infraction" under school policies. Other such infractions include arson; battery of a school board employee; bomb threats; burglary; sale of drugs or drug paraphernalia; possession of explosives or firearms on school property; robbery; and "other offenses reasonably likely to cause great harm to person or property or seriously disrupt the educational process."
Now, those things are all very serious, but pointing a finger gun at one of your friends while playing cops and robbers is not.
Man, I really hope this is some sort of misunderstanding. It has to be, right?
Some good news here at the end:
J.B.'s disciplinary action has since been downgraded to a "Class II Infraction," and J.B. has been permitted to return to class.
Class II Infractions include "[i]ntentionally hitting, pushing, kicking, or otherwise being physically aggressive with another student," so I'm not sure that is even justified.
J.B.'s parents are looking for a complete removal of this infraction by the school, or else legal action will remain on the table.
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