Does the punishment fit the crime?

[gofaster]

In my opinion, I'm glad to see parents being held accountable.

For the kids, 10-days for abusing a fellow student seems a bit light.

Punishing the victims seems way too excessive.  I would think they'd suffered enough from the hazing incident.

=====From Yahoo News=======

2 Parents Accused of Buying Hazing Beer
Wed May 21, 9:48 PM ET  Add U.S. National - AP to My Yahoo!
 

By MEGAN REICHGOTT, Associated Press Writer

SKOKIE, Ill. - Two parents were charged Wednesday with supplying alcohol to students at a suburban Chicago high school who participated in a brutal hazing incident captured on videotape.


Christine Neal, 49, was charged with delivery of alcohol to a minor for buying three kegs of beer, two of which were found at the park where the hazing took place, prosecutors said. Marcy Spiwak, 49, was charged with allowing her home to be used for underaged drinking.


Neal is the mother of student Dominic Vargas, 18, who was charged with unlawful possession of alcohol by a minor. Authorities said Vargas brought the kegs to the May 4 "powder puff" event where junior girls were brutally hazed by seniors.


"The violence that we all saw on the tapes from the melee at Chipilly Woods was fueled by alcohol," Cook County State's Attorney Richard Devine said. "The adults who bought this liquor or hosted a party where beer was consumed will be held accountable."


Videotape of the event shows juniors from Glenbrook North High School being covered with mud, paint, feces and garbage as onlookers, some hoisting beer cups, cheered.


Neal, who was arrested Tuesday, and Vargas were released on $100 bond each. An arrest warrant had been issued for Spiwak, who is the mother of a junior girl who was at the hazing.  If it was junior girls being victimized, and her daughter was a junior, does that mean that her daughter was a victim? Anyone know? All charges carry a maximum punishment of a year in jail; the adults also face fines of at least $500.


Vargas was among the 15 students who last week were charged with misdemeanor battery in the incident in suburban Northbrook. Some 31 students — all but three of them girls — have received 10-day suspensions.


Several students have filed lawsuits appealing their suspensions. The students, their parents and attorneys also will be able to pursue appeals through school hearings scheduled Thursday and Friday.


Some juniors who were hazing victims also have been suspended from the prom and other extracurricular activities and could face further punishment. School officials would not say how many were disciplined. This is way too excessive.  A girl gets crap smeared all over her head and she gets suspended from school for it?  This just doesn't seem right.


The school board will meet Sunday to decide whether to expel seniors suspended after the hazing, while students consider a deal offered by the district under which they could graduate on time.


Students still would be expelled and barred from the graduation ceremony, but the school would freeze their grades at their previous levels instead of automatically flunking them.

[Airhead]

No, the punishment does NOT fit the crime. Penalties for providing alcohol to minors are far too lax- give these parents a year of weekends in county jail and I'll guarantee you they won't buy booze for kids again.

My house is the local hang out for my daughter and her friends because we have a pool table, swimming pool, etc., and we have a ZERO tolorance policy and every kid who drops in knows this. As a result we've never had a problem with a drunk or stoned kid.

I'm amazed at the lack of responsibility shown by adults with regards to teenage drinking. Did they confinscate everyone's car keys? Make sure the kids stopped drinking once they were intoxicated? Are they aware that if a kid gets drunk on booze they've provided and gets in a car wreck the furnisher of the alcohol is civily and criminally responsible for all damages?

Yup... the next 52 weekends in jail and a ten thousand dollar fine should convince the parents of the error of their ways.

[Mighty1]

Was it on school property?

If not then sue the hell out of the school because it's none of their damn business!

[Maverick]

Commenting on punishment is a bit premature given that there has been no trial yet. No sentences means no punishment has been levied.

As to the junior girl's mother being charged. She provided part of the situation that allowed this to happen. I didn't see if her little girl was one of the "hazing" victims. She may have been off to the side or a contributor to the "hazing" since her mom provided the location.

Wait until the thing goes to trial and gets sorted out then complain.

AFAIAC it was stupid to even be involved in any part of this situation. Particularly for those who provided the beer.

[Mickey1992]

Screw the seniors involved.  The school district has already stated that the suspended students will still get diplomas, they just can't participate in any school related activities..including graduation.  Glad to see that a federal judge refused to step in.

Tue May 20,11:40 PM ET AP

CHICAGO - A federal judge refused Tuesday to lift the suspensions of two female students from a suburban Chicago high school after a violent hazing incident.

U.S. District Chief Judge Charles P. Kocoras made his ruling in a one-sentence order, without explanation, saying he would issue a written opinion later.

The students had argued the suspensions were imposed without due process, and were hoping that lifting the suspensions would derail efforts to expel them.

[Mickey1992]

And yes, I also agree that the punishment was/is light.  If these kids/adults were one year older and this happened at a Fraternity/Sorority at a university, I guarantee that they would have been kicked out of school and their houses would be shut.

[Mathman]

Originally posted by Mighty1
Was it on school property?

If not then sue the hell out of the school because it's none of their damn business!

While I can understand your thought process here, I disagree.  The actions of these students, regardless of where it occurs, reflects negatively on the school and the district.  This is even more so when the event was organized through the school, even if it wasn't school sponsored.  What happens is accountability.  If the school knows about it, it is accountable for what these students do.  Think about it for a second.  If the school knew about it and did nothing, many people would think that the school doesn't care, or even worse, condones this type of activity.  

Also, if you do any research, the kids are suspended pending an investigation that could ultimately lead to expulsion.  This is like putting someone on administrative leave while their actions are investigated prior to possible termination from the job.  

I am a dean at the high school I work at.  I will suspend a student if his actions are grounds for expulsion.  While they are suspended, we have a parent conference, further investigation (there is some investigation prior to suspension, don't want to punish a student if they didn't do anything), and then a meeting of the discipline board.  The discipline board is presented the case by one of the deans, hears the student and their parents, and has a discussion followed by a vote deciding on a recommended course of action to present to the principal.

While your initial reaction to this may be to expel the whole lot, there is often more at work than is initally apparent.  In addition, the rush to judgment may catch those who are not guilty of anyhting more than being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

All that being said, I don't know the whole story, and I doubt many people here do.  What you read in the papers, see on the news, or read here does not necessarily present an accurate view of what may have really happened.  You might want to take that into consideration.

Anyways, just my thoughts on this based on personal experience.