Current Events > Parents can face jail time in this New York town if their kid is a bully

(+) Yeah! (+)

http://www.12news.com/news/nation-world/parents-could-face-jail-time-if-their-kid-is-a-bully-in-this-new-york-town/483575828

NORTH TONAWANDA A new local law aims at holding parents accountable for their kids' bullying.

Effective Oct. 1, parents in North Tonawanda could possibly face a $250 fine and 15 days in jail if twice in a 90-day period if a child under 18 violates the city curfew or any other city law including bully and harassment.

This law comes after a small group of 14- and 15-year-olds was kicked out of their middle school for months of alleged bullying.

Back in May, police said the teens gathered outside a Dollar General store, waiting in ambush for another teen. One of the middle schoolers recorded the encounter, later posting it online.

"I saw the boy just sock him right in the face. He just punched him right in the face," said the mother of the boy who was ambushed. "And he was just smiling and laughing and shouting out how great it was, what he did to my son. He was looking right at me, completely fearless."

After the incident, Victoria and Will Crago, the parents of the boy who was bullied in the video, started the Facebook group, North Tonawanda Coalition for Safe Schools and Streets.

Within a couple of months, they had 600 members and began pressing the school system, the police department and city government for action, resulting in the new local law that puts parents on the hook for their child's behavior.

"Most of our parents are wonderful. They do take responsibility, and they do a good job with their children, and they guide them," said North Tonawanda Mayor Arthur Pappas. "But some just don't, and they need a wake-up call."

Will Crago said he is pleased with the new law and hopes it curbs the violence and mischief problems caused by some young people in North Tonawanda.

Defense attorney Paul Cambria, chair of the criminal department of the law firm Lipsitz Green Scime Cambria, said the higher level of knowledge on the part of the parent, the more enforceable the law is.

"I think that [the law] could stick as long as it requires either a reckless disregard by the parents in other words, they've seen bullying, did nothing about it or participation by the parents they gave them a gun, they went to school and shot someone or there's a negligence here, in the sense that you've been notified your child's a bully and you're doing nothing about it," Cambria said. "If they get that knowledge, I think they can enforce the statute."
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That'll totally fix the problem for sure
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This seems like it will have unintended consequences tbqh
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Give the teachers jumper cables!
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Hmm, I like it. Especially that attorneys statement. I doubt it will be enforced often, but if there's clear neglect or indifference after notification then I can understand this
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The Great Muta 22 posted...

Hmm, I like it. Especially that attorneys statement. I doubt it will be enforced often, but if there's clear neglect or indifference after notification then I can understand this

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I posted about dis 2 weeks ago
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nice
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Asherlee10 posted...

Yeah, I think you're right. Don't most bullies have problems at home from their parents and then they take that out on other children at school?

i think that is a common misconception

what is true is that children exposed to violence in their homes are more likely to become bullies

http://www.washington.edu/news/2006/09/12/violence-in-the-home-leads-to-higher-rates-of-childhood-bullying/

http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2011/04/22/135608823/many-bullies-get-pushed-around-at-home

a is one cause of b, but not the only/primary cause of b.
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Asherlee10 posted...

If so, that means that the parent that gets fined for their child being a bully, will likely treat that child like crap because they had to pay a fine and then that child will turn around and bully more.

and then they get tossed in the slammer for being a piece of shit, likely have the state look into what's going on and CPS hopefully takes their children away. Sounds like a win for the children.
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Fossil posted...

Asherlee10 posted...

If so, that means that the parent that gets fined for their child being a bully, will likely treat that child like crap because they had to pay a fine and then that child will turn around and bully more.

and then they get tossed in the slammer for being a piece of shit, likely have the state look into what's going on and CPS hopefully takes their children away. Sounds like a win for the children.

Parents have to be beyond shitty before CPS is in any way a win for the children.
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