Mom Who Cussed Out Principal Faces Charges
Filed under: In The News
A New Jersey mom fed up with bullying shared her feelings with the school principal -- using some colorful language -- and now she's facing criminal charges.
According to MYFOXNY, Cindy Schwalb claims a boy pulled down her 13-year-old daughter's sweatpants in front of her classmates at Hasbrouck Heights Middle School. She shared her frustrations at a school board seminar on bullying. When the school superintendent questioned her about the incident -- including asking Schwalb if her daughter was wearing a thong at the time -- she reached her boiling point.
"I had to find out what body parts were actually revealed," Superintendent Joseph Luongo tells the news station, adding that it was a fair question.
After the meeting, Schwalb confronted school principal Edward Bocar in a hallway and gave him a profanity-laced piece of her mind. She later apologized, but school board members -- one of whom is a police officer -- were less than forgiving. They filed a criminal complaint against the irate mom, and now she faces a disorderly conduct charge. She has pleaded not guilty.
Schwalb's lawyer, Boris Shmaruk, tells MYFOXNY that he is "proud" of his client: "She is a passionate mother who stood up for her daughter. More mothers should take her as an example. This is no longer a local New Jersey problem. The problem of bullying and intimidation is a national one that deserves public awareness."
We can't condone Schwalb's actions, but we certainly understand how she could blow a fuse after trying to defend her child and then being questioned about her daughter's undergarments in response. This is a case of two wrongs definitely not making a right.
Was Schwalb out of line, or did the principal earn her wrath?
Related: Bullying
Your<span>Voice</span>
Ask Us Anything About Parenting
Recently Asked
- The owner of the property or debit creditor can relieve the person(s) of the debt,(a employment position or (court) is not ownership
- 3 SHOWS A HOUR 7 HOURS = 21 (10 DAYS = 210) 10 STUDIOS = 2100 20 STUDIOS = 4200 (IN 10 DAYS) 3 (20 MINUTE SHOWS).
- D. hickman v. intel, microsoft et.al federal district court dc (bill gates deposition part 1 you tube?) are you a owner of a company?











ReaderComments (Page 1 of 19)
1-14-2010 @ 3:52PM
cece said...Good job mom - the princple deserved the tongue lashing. The school board, and the police officer on the board, should be more concerned with a person pulling another's clothes off in public rather than explosive language. Why is this concidered "disorderly conduct " and not freedom of speech?
Reply
1-15-2010 @ 1:33AM
carol castillo said...I agree. Also, when someone or yourself pulls down your pants, the butt, and private areas on the lower body are exposed. Who cares what she was wearing under her sweats, its not anyones business. So now the offender is the victim? Hey Principal, you are such a dumb a$$. Take me to court, then I can expose your immaturity or perversity! Just like the school in CA when the principal lifted the girls skirts and lowered their pants to check if they were wearing thongs? Excuse me? They were supposedly concerned the kids were going to have sex while at a school dance?? Hey don't have the dances. Some people need a good punch in the gut! I am so glad my kids are out of schooll. Also, if the mom lost her cool because of the stupid remarks by so called "Principal", you deserve what ever she says. Man up and accept the act was done, expell the kid who did it! He is probably going to be an "up and coming" molestor anyways. Wonder what he watches on tv. When a kid in San Diego CA Montgomery Middle School lifted my daughter's skirt my husband saw red and went to school to find him only to be told they could not reveal who it was, but yet, the story was all over the school what the little rat punk did to my 12 yr old. So Peace Out..parents stick up for your kids!!!!!!!!
1-19-2010 @ 2:22AM
cap10m said...It's Jersy right? She could've had the kid and/or the principal kneecapped for 2 packs of Lucky Strikes. Maybe she should try that route next time, at least she'll get her money's worth.
1-17-2010 @ 2:20PM
Terrance said...She has the right to say whatever she wants, however she wants. It's part of our rights, if someone doesn't like it, they have the right to walk away. My mother has been a teacher all of my life and the major concern should be somebody getting pants'd not there underwear, this principal is an idiot and so is the cop that cited her. They both need to go back to school and learn a few things themselves.
1-17-2010 @ 2:46PM
Paul Q. Public said...Every part of this situation reaks.... the student was wrong that did
what was done, the parent was wrong..... and the principal was wrong.
No one was right this was a situation where people are behaving badly
and the parent needs to be punished and the principal retrained.
The student who committed the wrong needs to be suspended. This is
not a case for expolsion.... as much as you and I may want it to be.
1-17-2010 @ 2:49PM
Mary said...you go mom, i have 3 girls and i would have done the same , i havent had too many problems but the one time i did they did nothing cause they were afraid of him well i took it in my own hands and went to his house and let his dad know what he was doing , and it stopped....as far as the PTA i was asked to leave but they kmew me before i did and let the local paper know the principal was afraid of certain kids , he now works else where, by the way this kid turned out to be pretty good after he got the punishments by the school he should have got ....once they got a prinicipal with some balls..... you go mom and stand proud you are a caring mom....woooohooooo kudos to you
1-17-2010 @ 2:50PM
Mary said...hey i would pants the damm prinicipal maybe he wears ladies underwear or gets off knowing a girl wears thongs, im glad it wasn't me they would have arrested me if he asked me that i would have beat the crap out of him ... the pansy ass wuss, probably a child molester .....we need to stand up to these dammm kids or they will walk all over everybody
1-17-2010 @ 3:21PM
Concerned said...Perhaps "Mom" should consider filiing assault charges against the boy. After all, the boy DID lay his hands on the daughter. As for the school board and the principal. I think we all know that most educators consider themselves "intellectuals" and are above the issues that concern the common masses. Has anyone . . . anyone . .. ever dealt with a principal or school Superintendent that did NOT talk down to them? They're strange and in their own little world. Ah ha!! That could be why students are graduating and can barely be considered "functional." in todays society.
1-17-2010 @ 2:59PM
denton said...I agree, more needs to done to prevent kids from becoming bullies. Like starting at home make the parents pay right along with the bullie when he cought in the act. Give Hell! Moms
1-17-2010 @ 3:14PM
Amanda said...Good Job Mom! I think that the academic staff of public schools are dramatically changing thus causing insecurity in children and stress for the parents. No staff of a school district should have the authority to ask what a child wears under their pants nor their shirts. I believe the officer that remains on the schools board should be removed along with the school's superintendent. Rather than addressing the situation: a parent's child being embarrassed by another student's immature and inappropiate action to bully in the presence of other classmates ...... a superintendent is focusing on style of the garment exposed?!?! Exactly why are we paying and employing this individual? Rather than addressing the issue effectively, the parent and child are now exposed to media to help resolve this matter at hand.
I teach my daughter from home with the intent of her going to a public school district in the future .....however, I am not feeling confident of the way matters are handled in school districts. This mother deserves recognition for making her voice be heard no matter how it came across because no parent would have handled that ignorant superintendent's inquiry well.
The superintendent owes an apology to the parent and her child, family, the district's community, and a national apology to all other students/parents who had to hear of this superintendent's lack of professionalism.
"Here is hoping that the superintendent will soon be working at a career more tailored to his inappropiate vocabulary! And ....that the courts favor the mother and child."
Amanda
West Chester, Ohio
1-17-2010 @ 3:20PM
Matt said...I agree, i'm not supprised tho that the police officer on the board pressed charges. New Jersey is practically a police state and the local police feel as tho they are the end all be all of social justice. There is serious power hungry issuse with many that i have met in the course of my work. ( I'm in law enforement as well). No one can be more petulant than a COP who feels his authority is not being respected or god forbid ....infringed upon.
1-17-2010 @ 3:24PM
cannotbelievethis said...Yeah exactly, cece... and why isn't the other punk being charged with sexual assault? He tried to undress a girl in public. A little kid gets expelled for bringing camping gear to school, and the abuser who pulled down this girls pants isn't being charged? I HAVE A FEW WORDS for the principal, they have four letters, and have NOTHING TO DO with "Love", "Hope", or "Golf"
1-17-2010 @ 3:57PM
tropicana1122 said...Bullying has to stop, after the principal made that comment I would've slapped the S#%&t out of him. That's like rape when a women is raped she is portrayed as if she was looking for it. I'm sick and tired of men and boys getting away with attacking women and others looking the other way and all they get is a slap on the wrist. Maybe she should press charges on the boy so he will never do that again.
1-17-2010 @ 3:55PM
chuckie said...This stupidintendent wanted to know if the girl was wearing a thing?!? What a jerk! Both of these guys need to be fired.
1-17-2010 @ 4:05PM
hubie thompson said...YOUR 110% CORRECT
1-18-2010 @ 8:47PM
RAY said...I agree with the mother. If i was there I'd probable be in jail. The officer should be more concerned with the boy who pulled her daughter's sweatpants down,than a principal who got a well deserved tongue lashing. If parents were able to discipline their children without the fear of going to jail this may have never happened. This kid should receive a three day suspension and have too make a personal apology at the very least. The officer should be reprimanded for abuse of authority.
1-17-2010 @ 4:16PM
TC said...I agree with the mom. Why has the board members shown more concern about the action of the boy. No wonder the student behave as he has done.
1-17-2010 @ 4:08PM
Morrris Martin said...You are right. The issue here is did another student pull down her kid's sweats and, if so, what did the school do about it? The mother lost her temper and her mouth followed. Whose wouldn't? The student who did the pulling should have been suspended. It seems to me that the school is more interested in covering up this incident and the people involved than doing the right thing. The cursing may be unacceptable but the school board should have been more unaccepting of the incident that sparked it in the first place.
1-17-2010 @ 4:12PM
Morris Martin said...Absolutely right. It is not the business of the school principal or school board to regulate or note what teenage girls wear under their clothing. This is a smokescreen to avoid the real issue.
1-17-2010 @ 4:13PM
J said...I was teaching for a highschool P.E. class and this instance occurred at the start of class. It was one girl pulling down the pants (all) down to the ankles! Complete embarrassment and harrassment. The perpertrator was only suspended for one day--how about some criminal charges?! Kids cannot get away with this and principals need to do something drastic to stop it!