Girl's arrest for doodling raises concerns about zero tolerance

Alexa Gonzalez was a 12 year old girl who attends the Junior High School in Forest Hills, New York. She was recently arrested because she wrote “I love my friends Abby and Faith. Lex was here 2/1/10 : )” on her school desk. The seventh-grader was taken across the street and handcuffed in front of her teachers and worst of all the entire student body. The school claims that they are just trying to enforce the zero tolerance policy. However they get younger than 12 years of age. A sixth grader was also arrested in New York for doodling with her friend in class. New York schools are also trying the system of ticketing students for being tardy. For a second offence of this you are sent to court and fined $250. In Clayton County, Georgia, juvenile court judge Steven Teske is working to reshape zero tolerance policies in schools. He wants the courts to be a last resort. "There is zero intelligence when you start applying zero tolerance across the board," he said. "Stupid and ridiculous things start happening."

My opinion is that New York seriously needs to look over their rules on zero tolerance. It is outrageous that a school hands out tickets to students who are tardy. These tickets show up on their record forever. Then to further it more they fine them if it happens again! I personally do not want to have to be ticketed if I happen to get behind a slow driver. Yes, the schools say that their tardiness numbers have gone down but at what cost. I can almost guarantee that every student is speeding to get to school, not only endangering their lives but others around them, because they are scared of being ticketed or even arrested. Also do the schools think that the court is going to take these cases seriously? The truth is no, they are not. Who is going to send a 12 year old girl to jail for doodling on her school desk. She even offered to clean it off but no, she was humiliated in front of her entire school. That girl will be scarred for life. Kids in school can get to be really mean and I’m sure none of them will forget that incident. I completely agree with Steven Teske when he says that stupid and ridiculous things are starting happen.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/02/18/new.york.doodle.arrest/index.html?hpt=Mid