Posted on 03/10/2004 7:49:57 PM PST by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
The "Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994" requires a one-year expulsion of any student who brings a firearm to any elementary or secondary school that receives federal funding. The Act allows "the chief administering officer of such local educational agency to modify such expulsion requirement for a student on a case-by-case basis."
Many public schools have taken the liberty to expand this policy to include toy guns, food items being used as toy guns, and children pointing their fingers like guns. Most would agree that this is ludricious, with the exception of many schoolteachers and policymakers whose melodramatic paranoia of anything gun-like is beyond any semblance of reason.
This reefer-madness mentality about firearms is a major contributing factor to the total lack of education about the Second Amendment in our nation's schools. Plus, it creates a mysterious, forbidden mystique about firearms that generates a natural curiosity among young people. A curiosity that puts some at risk as they may not have had any education about firearms or firearm safety and are certainly not going to get such an education at school.
This hyper-sensitivity to all-things-gun may have just cost a California high school senior his future. The high school senior, Adam Liston, is a responsible, hard working, patriotic, honor student. Always one to follow the rules and never one to get in trouble, Adam was a model student, but he was also a gun owner. A gun owner who committed a crime.
Adam's crime was that of forgetfulness. As is typical of a teenager he forgot. They forget all kinds of things, don't they? But, this one just might ruin his chances at a life that he has barely begun.
The high-schooler purchased a shotgun, legally, for his 18th birthday. Being an avid sportsman, he enjoyed shooting before and after school and during lunch breaks, off campus. But, the young man forgot to remove his unloaded shotgun before returning to school one day. A fellow student, having seen Mr. Liston's shotgun in the gun-rack on the back of his pickup on a previous day, reported Adam to the principal's office.
The principal called Adam into his office and asked for permission to search the truck. Mr. Liston agreed. That's all fine and well. We understand that the principal was merely trying to ensure that Davis High School was in compliance with the "Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994."
What we don't understand is why four police units were also on the scene. After all, Adam Liston was not hostile or disturbed. He was a model citizen and honor student. He cooperated with the principal. No threats or anti-social behavior had been demonstrated by him. And yet, the police were there in full force.
Upon retrieving the unloaded shotgun, Adam Liston, high school honor student, was charged with two felonies. If convicted, he can never own a firearm again and he will always have trouble finding a job. This incident of simple forgetfulness will follow him for the rest of his life thanks to his educators at Davis High School. He was also expelled, of course.
Our nation's educators have taken their gun-phobia to an extreme that has become dangerous to our children. Unable to keep their emotions in check, school officials are now ruining the lives of otherwise good kids.
What will society do as Adam's fate hangs in the balance? Will regular folks step in and demand an end to this rampant discrimination against gun owners? Or will we continue to kowtow to the whining, sniveling, rats who demand that we submit and deny ourselves our rights in order to preserve the status quo?
Davis High School - (530) 757-5400
Davis Joint Unified School District - (530) 757-5300 ext. 142
Yolo County Unified School District - (530) 668-3703
Davis Police Department, Investigations Unit - (530) 747-5430
Sec. 8922 Policy regarding criminal justice system referral
(a) In general
No funds shall be made available under this chapter to any local educational agency unless such agency has a policy requiring referral to the criminal justice or juvenile delinquency system of any student who brings a firearm or weapon to a school served by such agency."
How European of you!
You answered your own question. It's an excuse when the law sucks.
When "the law" devolves into a megapile of "Simom Says" arcana, designed not to "protect", but rather to trip up the unwitting, something is terribly amis, to put it politely.
The child should be acquitted, and the morons who persecuted him on this trumped-up BS should be prosecuted. There is such a thing as "sanity", and this lunacy fails the sanity test.
And as someone famous once said, more or less. "If that's what the law says, the law in an ass.". Not to mention doubly or triply unconstitutional. The first version of the Gun Free School zones act was thrown out the Supreme Court on 10th amendment grounds (IE no power exists for Congress to pass such a law, education is not commerce so they have no power to regulate it). Congress just added some "interstate commerce" pixie dust, and passed the law again. Maybe this kid's case should be the test case, to get the newer version thrown out as well? After all, if they are going to charge him with a felony, and mess up his life, what's he got to lose?
It used to be that "criminal intent" was required for a felony conviction. Clearly the kid didn't have that. But of course that rule got in the way of the War on Drugs and is in the way of the War on Guns as well, so it's pretty much ignored these days.
There IS discretion. They could have "referred" him to the truant officer, and directed him to tell the kid "be more careful next time, OK?"
This is a shakedown, period.
Well, someone fictional. The "the law is an ass" quote is from Dicken's "Oliver Twist". Oops.
"Mrs. Jones, your son was caught pointing his finger like it was a gun. This behavior is not tolerated."
"Oh good grief, what's wrong with you people? All he did was point his finger! No one was harmed in the least! All my son did was point his finger fer cryin' out loud!"
"Yes, yes, we were very lucky this time. All he did was point his finger. But what if he'd actually used it? We just can't afford to take that kind of risk!"
"Anyway, I'm a busy man, and I'm afraid I'll have to bring this meeting to a close. You can discuss your son's case with the social worker on... let me see now... OK, right. You can meet with the social worker on the 25th of next month. Perhaps she'll have better luck explaining things to you. By the way, you can also request supervised visitation at that time if you desire."
"But... but... but... this is insane!"
"Madam! Do not threaten me like that! Shall I have to call the police for you too? I'm not surprised at your son's risky behavior, now that I see what kind of 'parent' raised him!"
A lot of people don't have their minds right on that point.
The Constitution is the supreme law. All other government statutes, regulations, policies, etc. must stay within constitutional bounds.
The gun free school act is a flagrant violation of the Second Amendment, not to mention an abuse of the Commerce Clause.
And how about all those homosexual marriages going on? Is that your idea of "brave civil disobedience"? Your pathetic, and your obviously a disruptor from DU. I'm glad you live in Cali because that's where you belong.
That was in Maryland before the Liberal Socialist Reformation.
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