[Presto]

:seriously::fulloffuck::facepalm:

I went to a few diff sources to confirm the veracity of this, and am quite shocked at how far the amount of stupid goes.

South Fayette mother wants case against bullied son to be dropped | TribLIVE (http://triblive.com/news/allegheny/5941400-74/son-love-recording)
The mother of a South Fayette High School student convicted of disorderly conduct for recording classmates bullying him wants a judge to reverse the decision and the district to apologize.

Shea Love, 40, of South Fayette questioned why school officials contacted police to discuss a possible violation of wiretap laws but refused to confront the students whose voices she says were captured on an iPad tormenting her son.

Love requested the identity of her son, 15, a sophomore diagnosed with a comprehension delay disorder, ADHD, and an anxiety disorder, be kept private out of fear of retribution.

“The whole thing has been a horrible nightmare,” Love told the Tribune-Review on Sunday. “This whole ordeal has made my son miserable.”

Asked to discuss the case, school board President Len Fornella said: “I can't comment on that.”

Other school board members, Superintendent Bille P. Rondinelli, high school principal Scott Milburn and assistant principal Aaron Skrbin did not return calls or could not be reached during the weekend. South Fayette police could not be reached.

According to a transcript of a March 19 hearing before South Fayette District Judge Maureen McGraw-Desmet, the boy said he made the seven-minute recording “because I always felt like it wasn't me being heard.”

He said classmates harassed him for several months, and even though he told his mom, he didn't have anything to show for it.

“I wanted some help,” he said. “This wasn't just a one-time thing. This always happens every day in that class.”

Love testified that the recording includes one boy telling another boy to pull her son's pants down. The teacher tells them that if what they're talking about doesn't have anything to do with math, they need to stop talking.

Later in the recording, Love testified, there is a loud slam, and the teacher tells them to sit down.

Two boys ask, “What? I was just trying to scare him.”

Milburn called South Fayette police Lt. Robert Kurta on Feb. 12 requesting he come take a report because he believed he “had a wiretapping incident.” State law generally prohibits secret audio recording.

After questioning the boy, district officials forced him to erase the recording and punished him with a Saturday detention, which he served, according to the hearing transcript. Kurta, who testified that he did not hear the recording, charged him with disorderly conduct, a summary offense.

Kurta did not return calls. He told the judge that he didn't think the case warranted a felony wiretapping charge but made the decision to pursue a summary charge “because I believe that he committed a crime.”

Skrbin testified that the district had records of Love complaining about students bullying her son, including an incident in October in which a student hit her son with “spitwads,” even after her son told him to stop.

“To be blunt, I would not classifying that as bullying,” Skrbin said.

McGraw-Desmet found Love's son guilty. She fined him a minimum of $25 and ordered him to pay court costs. McGraw-Desmet could not be reached.

Love said her son is appealing the judge's decision.

A hearing is scheduled in Common Pleas Court on April 29.

[Phil@rise]

soo in short if your being bullied involve the police get a warrant and set up a sting operation lol

[Mr.HappySilp]

So the boy got the evidence that he was being bully and the school instead of helping the boy decides to go after him instead. Hell that's mess up. If I was the parents I would use every penny I had to sue the school ass. I wouldn't even delete the evident and rather put it online give it to the meida and let the world know how the school is handling this case.

[murd0c]

He should take that to the human rights tribunal and the charges will be changed really quickly.

[underscore]

And people wonder why kids snap and end up hurting themselves or others. I'm definitely not condoning it, but could you really blame the kid if he had done something more extreme than just try to gather evidence against some shitheads?

[Traum]

:fulloffuck::fulloffuck::fulloffuck:

The only consolation I can think of is, now that the incident has been brought to light, perhaps there will be some changes / action taken to address the issue. But the cynical side of me thinks that a lot of the idiots and bullies involved are only gonna get a slap on the wrist, and then continue doing the same old stupid shxt...

[white rocket]

Kid gets bullied for several months. Feels helpless. Tries to capture the bullying acts on tape by recording some incidents hoping to gather evidence. Now the kid is under scrutiny because his recordings were not authorized? WTF!? Principal and police saying no comment now? State law prohibits secret recordings? Vice Principal says it's not bullying?

I'm reading this thinking that the moral is don't live in the state of PA.

[PiuYi]

that judge needs her judgeship revoked

[GLOW]

handled all wrong, gets national exposure, authorities involved not available for comment or say 'no comment'. sounds about right. :facepalm:

[SpeedStars]

Was bullied in elementary school. Ended up with a fractured wrist. Know what the principal and VP said after having a sit down with me and my parents? They said boys will be boys. Know what I did? Fucked that kid up when I got back to school. Want to know what happened? Nothing at all. No detention. That was the day I found out shit works both ways

[multicartual]

If you're getting bullied the best way to deal with it is swift and unexpected violence

[multicartual]

Fucked that kid up when I got back to school.


Haha a deaf kid threw a boiling hot pot of coffee in the face of another kid at an alternative school I went to and he was never bullied again

[kkthind]

Was bullied in elementary school. Ended up with a fractured wrist. Know what the principal and VP said after having a sit down with me and my parents? They said boys will be boys. Know what I did? Fucked that kid up when I got back to school. Want to know what happened? Nothing at all. No detention. That was the day I found out shit works both ways
https://i.imgflip.com/82hd6.jpg
This pretty much proves that schools don't do shit when students are involved in some form of conflict, getting detention from knocking out someone isn't really gonna rehabilitate someone
Posted via RS Mobile

[Yodamaster]

This is exactly why kids pick up guns and take care of the problem themselves, and then people wonder why they snapped like a bunch of headless chickens.

I was bullied a lot in high school, and I didn't have the courage to stick up for myself, it made me feel like shit every day. I'll admit that I thought about finding an easy way to take care of things, luckily I had friends that cared.

It's such a transparent problem, the cause is obvious, and yet the system that could help does nothing.

[underscore]

^ agreed. People are surprised if a kid snaps and does something drastic but it's easy for them to end up in a spot where they feel ending either their life or the bullies is the only way out.

Was bullied in elementary school. Ended up with a fractured wrist. Know what the principal and VP said after having a sit down with me and my parents? They said boys will be boys. Know what I did? Fucked that kid up when I got back to school. Want to know what happened? Nothing at all. No detention. That was the day I found out shit works both ways

I dealt with shit all the way through elementary and middle school, one day the kid who harassed me the most pushed me down and I snapped. Cranked him in the side of the head as hard as I could (I was always small for my age so realistically it wasn't much). Once I calmed down I was worried I would get in shit but nothing ever came of it, he never fucked with me again though.

[Gumby]

That's what I've been teaching my 6 yr old son. If you get bullied, tell someone, ask for help, etc. But if that doesn't work, fight back!

Even if he gets in shit, at least the bully will think twice before doing it again. Besides, bullies are simply looking for easy targets.

[Presto]

The story is starting to pick up steam. I predict some head rolling because the townsfolk are sharpening their pitchforks. Also, the mother is an air force vet, and is in MILF territory:

http://a57.foxnews.com/global.fncstatic.com/static/managed/img/U.S./876/493/shealove.jpg

[123654123]

^all i got from this thread is bullied student has a mom who is in MILF territory

[z3german]

Damn dat red hair :notbad::ifyouknow:

[murd0c]

We need a full body pic now...

[underscore]

There's no way she has a highschool aged son.

[Gumby]

Well the article says she's 40 and he's 15, so it's very possible that she had him when she was 25...

[Tone Loc]

This is exactly why kids pick up guns and take care of the problem themselves, and then people wonder why they snapped like a bunch of headless chickens.

I was bullied a lot in high school, and I didn't have the courage to stick up for myself, it made me feel like shit every day. I'll admit that I thought about finding an easy way to take care of things, luckily I had friends that cared.

It's such a transparent problem, the cause is obvious, and yet the system that could help does nothing.

This. Everyone points to stupid things like gun control, etc etc., without concentrating on the actual problem: bullying. What did most, if not all, of those school shootings have in common? The shooter was a kid who was treated like sh*t by his classmates, had no friends, and were told to "suck it up" when they told an adult how they were being bullied.

I won't lie, I was bullied all throughout elementary school... being the new kid, the fat kid, the nerdy kid, and the non East-Van kid all at once didn't get me any friends. And I hated myself every day, dreaded going to school, parents didn't understand/try to help... I won't lie and say I didn't think of doing something stupid/reckless, luckily I graduated and went to a whole different school before things escalated to that level. And I can honestly say that stuff like telling your kid to "suck it up" - especially in these social media days where bullying often follows a child home and on the internet - isn't an option when they are faced with bullying more than in the classroom...

[z3german]

Its a tough, I honestly think the best thing to do as a parent is first gauge the severity of it. If it isnt that bad (no need for police) I would teach him to sock him in the jaw or take self defense and encourage him to use it only in situations needed.

If parents help all the time, going to cops, going to teachers, going to the bullies parents, it just makes the pussification of our generation worse than it already is. Sometimes you have to let your kids fall for them to learn, but you should teach them to get back up.

[Presto]

Charges will be dropped. Now, to see how the school responds.


Charge against South Fayette student who recorded alleged bullying will be dropped - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (http://www.post-gazette.com/local/west/2014/04/16/Charge-against-student-who-recorded-alleged-bullying-will-be-dropped/stories/201404160165)

A summary disorderly conduct charge against a South Fayette sophomore who claims he was bullied by fellow students will be withdrawn by prosecutors at a hearing in Common Pleas Court on April 29.

Christian Aaron True Stanfield, 15, used his iPad mini to record one incident of what he considered to be an ongoing string of bullying events on Feb. 11, in his math resource class.

When his mother, Shea Love, contacted school administrators about what she heard on the recording the next morning, instead of taking action against the alleged bullies, Ms. Love said, school officials called the police to report her son, who has special needs, for what they considered to be a wiretap violation. They also forced him to delete the recording.

"It's very disappointing they didn't handle this differently," Ms. Love said. "You can't record people, but let's fix what's going on."

The school district today issued a news release saying some of the information being reported on this incident is "inaccurate or incomplete."

But the release goes on to say the district is legally precluded from commenting specifically on the issue.

"The South Fayette Township School District follows its policies regarding harassment and bullying. School district officials treat any and all reports of bullying timely and seriously, and with the utmost care and sensitivity."

A call to Lt. Robert Kurta, who issued the citation, was not returned.

In Pennsylvania, a person must obtain permission to record another if in a private setting. South Fayette police, instead of filing a wiretap charge, charged Christian with a summary count of disorderly conduct.

At a hearing on March 19, Magisterial District Judge Maureen McGraw-Desmet found him guilty.

"I thought for sure that woman would have some sense and say, 'this is stupid and throw it out,'" Ms. Love said.

Today, Mike Manko, a spokesman for the district attorney's office, said his office is not involved in the issuance of summary counts, but takes on the case at the appellate level in Common Pleas Court. The citation against Christian will be withdrawn at the April 29 hearing, he said..

"No one who is authorized to give advice on wiretap or school violation issues was contacted in our office by the school district or South Fayette police," Mr. Manko said. "Multiple attempts to contact the officer who wrote the citation have been made.

"We have not heard from him."

When she learned about the charges being withdrawn, Ms. Love shrieked with excitement.

"That's awesome," she said. "That's going to repair his soul. He was so devastated."

[underscore]

Hold on a moment, since when is a school a private setting?

[Yodamaster]

Hold on a moment, since when is a school a private setting?

It's not supposed to be, students are expected to adhere to school board rules, but (at least here) a public school is just that, public. I've seen plenty of students take photos and videos on school property without being told not to.

[Presto]

Not sure, but if it's like any typical US High School, they would have their own security cameras, and have signs that'll state you're being recorded. If that's the case, there shouldn't be a problem with the ipad recording.

Also, what kind of show are the people in charge trying to run? The DA can't even get hold of his employee:
Today, Mike Manko, a spokesman for the district attorney's office, said his office is not involved in the issuance of summary counts, but takes on the case at the appellate level in Common Pleas Court. The citation against Christian will be withdrawn at the April 29 hearing, he said..

"No one who is authorized to give advice on wiretap or school violation issues was contacted in our office by the school district or South Fayette police," Mr. Manko said. "Multiple attempts to contact the officer who wrote the citation have been made."

[freakshow]

I always thought the only requirement for recording people is that the recording had to have been done by one of the people in the conversation

[underscore]

^ depends on the jurisdiction.

[CRS]

I always thought the only requirement for recording people is that the recording had to have been done by one of the people in the conversation

American law =/= Canadian law

[finbar]

It's a question of reasonable expectation of privacy.
The charter speaks to this.

[Yodamaster]

It's a question of reasonable expectation of privacy.
The charter speaks to this.

Is it legal to record a private conversation? Wiretapping and the one party consent exception to the rule against interception | LegalTree.ca (http://www.legaltree.ca/node/908)

Bullying and Cyberbullying - Royal Canadian Mounted Police (http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/cycp-cpcj/bull-inti/index-eng.htm)


It is considered illegal to record a private conversation unless you are an active part of it, and it is also "illegal" to bully or harass others. Considering that the conversations being held were loud enough to record, and were directed at the victim, I would wager that it would be considered a conversation in which the victim is directly involved.

This kind of situation is therefore a gray area, it's up to a judge to decide whether the recording was warranted. If I had the power, I would amend the law to allow recording of harassment and/or bullying for the purpose of being presented as proof. Obviously in this case, the court's verdict aligns with my view of the situation, thrown out.

[iEatClams]

Was bullied in elementary school. Ended up with a fractured wrist. Know what the principal and VP said after having a sit down with me and my parents? They said boys will be boys. Know what I did? Fucked that kid up when I got back to school. Want to know what happened? Nothing at all. No detention. That was the day I found out shit works both ways

i did the same thing, guy was bullying me, I beat him up pretty badly where he it fucked up his eye and he had to wear an eye patch. I ended up having the police at my house and talk to my parents and I got suspended. it was a matter of he said/he said.

this guy was bullying me for months, i finally stand up for myself and I get the worst end of the straw. It was worth the suspension but not worth going to this anger management thing that they forced me to do.

[Traum]

^^ Did anything (disciplinary or investigation type of stuff) happen to the bully kid you beat up? At a minimum, I'm sure nobody at school dared to mess with you anymore.

But I'd have to say -- the eye thing seems a bit extreme. Still, when you are a kid and you have been under the pressure of all this bully, his eye's well being is probably the last of your concerns.