Boy, 8, Arrested for 5th Time in 4 Months

sirgalton -- I think that you are dead wrong, but it may not be your fault as the way this article is written, they wait until the very end to mention the fact that this child has a disability ... and then they don't even say what the disability is. This is a case of poor reporting on the part of the author, trying to make sensationalist writing to get people to read. If this child has a disability, it is the fault of the school for not properly placing the child in a classroom where the needs of the child can be met. Is it possible the parents are also at fault as well for not getting the child the help it needs? Possibly, but who knows? The police keep showing up while the child is at school, so it is more likely the teachers don't have the proper training. Makes me think that they are the ones at fault.

miche- I agree with you partially. Schools attempt to provide children with disabilities & mental health issues the necessary support services or placement into adequate programs. Parents can refuse the recommendations in fear of the child being labeled. However, in this case it appears that the child was already placed into a special education program. In one article I read, the child was yelling to be arrested, we all know that he would not stop until he received his wish, this child is not stupid.
I have dealt with cases very similar to this, have worked with school administrators and have been called into alternative programs along with the police during crisis situations. School staff can only do so much, before further action is necessary. When all avenues of crisis intervention have been implemented and are unsuccessful, then the police must be involved. You can not expect support staff, principals or guidance counselors to spend an entire day, 1 on 1 with a violent child, while neglecting their duties to children, staff and parents. If you had a disabled child in the same setting, you would not want them anywhere near a violent child. It puts their safety at risk and prevents them from learning. The excuses that you have presented lead to the neglecting of mental health needs of these children. The end result, is a few years down the line, the parents are begging for this child to be removed from their home. When you make excuses for your disabled child's violent and disrespectful behavior towards adults and authority, they will eventually turn on you.

The kid doesn't have a disability, the public defender's relative does.

sirgalton the boy in the article doesn't have the disability the public defender's younger brother does.

Sorry my comment was directed at miche.

Get over it, Miche. Half the kids in school today have some sort of "disability". I suspect in the majority of cases, the disability is a means of getting the mother a social security disability check and a pass for the child to skate by with lowered expectations. Sounds to me like this kid needs a good whippin'.

It does not say this child has a disability. More like an attachment disorder. I have only ever seen this type of rage in children who have been victims of sexual abuse.

just an FYI- The word "disability" did come up in other articles. Anyways, mental health/ behavioral concerns in the school setting ARE referred to disabilities MOST of the time...

Sirgalton--You assume so much here. You have no idea what the parents have done for this child or failed to do. You cannot assume it is the parents fault and frankly, you lost me the moment you called an 8 year child with a disabilty a "monster". You need retraining!

If you read the article even a little bit closer you will see that it says he attends Riverside where he spends most of his time in the "school in a unit designed to help students with significant emotional or behavioral problems".

That translates as a disability.

The article DOES actually refer to the child having some form of disability (mental or behavioral) where it says he spends most of his days in the unit for children with emotional/behavioral issues. You don't get into that sort of unit by bad behavior alone - there are federal and state guidelines for special education.

Having said that - while the federal government has the stance that all children have the right to a public education, that does not mean that it is right for all children. It sounds like this child needs schooling in an environment specifically designed for his needs.

Why is it always the school's fault? I feel for a child that has a disability, but maybe this school is not where he will recieve the care he obviously needs desperately. Public schools have enough to do just to teach our child reading, writing, mathmatics. How much time and energy has the administration had to use to deal with this child? Probably a disproprtionate amount of time compared to the other students in the school. Again, I feel for the child and his family; BUT when schools have such a limited amount of resources, why do these kids receive a larger piece of the financial and time pie?

OMG! i can not believe some of the comments that are written here. i have an eight year old son with a disability, high functioning autism. parents don't get money from the government because their children have a disability. i wish we did, we spend a small fortune on evaluations, therapy and other support. and jackie butler, do you seriously think these kids have no chance in life? incredible.

i don't have the time to address every misinformed comment above. i do caution ALL OF YOU to withhold judgement unless you have all the facts. there may be times that a child becomes aggressive because of some form of abuse or neglect at home. but to suggest that is the case with all aggressive children is dangerous.

my son was aggressive at school last year, both verbally and physically. his aggression was not the fault of poor parenting. it was more likely the result of the staff at school not understanding how to properly support a child on the autism spectrum. we kept him out of school for three months until the school put in place the appropriate personel to help him. NOT poor parenting. NOT abuse. NOT a family taking advantage of the system or receiving free government money. an innocent child with a disability who has a legal right to an education. he has had proper support this school year, and there have been zero incidents of aggression since the year began in august. public schools need to get themselves educated because children with disabilities are on the rise. and our school systems need to know how to help these children learn.

public school may not be the best placement for this child, but it breaks my heart to hear him referred to as a monster. it breaks my heart to hear you all blaming the parents. you have no idea the challenges of raising a child who is not neuro-typical. please save your judgement, what this family may need is some compassion, support, and understanding. we don't have all the facts, so please stop blaming.

"Robert Wesley, an Orange County public defender, tells the Sentinel he has taken the case personally because his younger brother has a disability and sometimes lashes out."

GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGT MICHE

I think this kid should be put in a body cast for six months, whether he has any broken bones or not. Should be fed intravensly as well and then should have a child psychologist evaluate and treat him everyday in the situation he is in. He's out of control and I think this is the only type of touch love that will work. He is going eventually hurt someone else or himself, so why not try something off the wall with this kid. Sure, it won't be done, because it will be called cruel and unusual punishment, but with a kid of this type, it might be worth it to try it. My opinon only.

miche said...
sirgalton -- I think that you are dead wrong, but it may not be your fault as the way this article is written, they wait until the very end to mention the fact that this child has a disability ... and then they don't even say what the disability is. This is a case of poor reporting on the part of the author, trying to make sensationalist writing to get people to read. If this child has a disability, it is the fault of the school for not properly placing the child in a classroom where the needs of the child can be met. Is it possible the parents are also at fault as well for not getting the child the help it needs? Possibly, but who knows? The police keep showing up while the child is at school, so it is more likely the teachers don't have the proper training. Makes me think that they are the ones at fault.



"Robert Wesley, an Orange County public defender, tells the Sentinel he has taken the case personally because his younger brother has a disability and sometimes lashes out"

The article indicates that the public defender's brother has a disability, not the child in the story.

You know whose fault this is, THE PARENTS. If they would displine the brat at home and then if the school would have spanked him on the butt, maybe none of this would still be happening. But no one is to blame except THE PARENTS.

My mother used to work with emotional support kids of the little boys age. When I first read this story I thought it was from the school she used to work at. There were kids in her class that were taken out in handcuffs because they were so unruly. In these classes they are allowed to say and do what they want as long as they don't touch anyone. Sadly a lot of these children are crack babies (I mean that literally) and I feel more sorry for them than angry.

Colleen & MoxeeGirl if you go back and reread what miche said he didn't like that the author waited until the end of the article to mention that the boy was disabled. But the only mention of a boy being disabled at the end of the article was made by the public defender. The part that you both are referring to about the boy being in a unit for emotional or behavioral problems was in the beginning of the story. The author never actually said that the boy was disabled.