Bullying / Schools / Retaliation
Father Says Va. Students Bullied Son
Parents Express Regret For Terrorizing of School
By Ian Shapira
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, September 30, 2004; Page B05
The father of a seventh-grader who stormed into his Prince William County middle school with a high-powered rifle and threatened to shoot people said yesterday that his son was the target of incessant bullying and that school officials did not do enough to stop the problem.
"My son was tormented," said David Lewis of Haymarket, whose son is 13 years old. ". . .Although his actions were not justified . . . bullying should not be tolerated."
Lewis, 40, spoke publicly for the first time after a closed hearing in Prince William Juvenile and Domestic Relations court, where a judge ordered his son to undergo a psychological exam, according to prosecutors. At the boy's next hearing on Nov. 24, Judge Janice Brice could release him, send him to a juvenile home or continue to hold him in a state detention facility up to age 21, they said.
If Brice sends the boy to a state detention facility, Department of Juvenile Justice officials will determine when he is released, said Prince William Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Claiborne T. Richardson II.
Last month, the seventh-grader pleaded guilty in juvenile court to three felony weapon and abduction charges stemming from the siege at Bull Run Middle School on June 18, the last day of classes.
Flanked by his wife, Naomi, and their attorney outside the courtroom, David Lewis expressed regret for his son's actions, which have haunted the community.
"My wife and I want to apologize for the actions of our son," he said, adding his gratitude for the "measured response and skill" of the Prince William County Police Department. Lewis then criticized school officials, saying they had done little to combat bullying. "It's one thing to have a zero-tolerance policy, but it's another thing to see it actually enforced," he said.
Lewis said he and his wife tried to get their son, then 12, to tell them whether there were problems at school, "but he never came out and said 'Here's what's happening, here's who's doing what.' " Friends have said the boy was bullied because of his clothing and his size.
source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A60698-2004Sep29.html
Parents Express Regret For Terrorizing of School
By Ian Shapira
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, September 30, 2004; Page B05
The father of a seventh-grader who stormed into his Prince William County middle school with a high-powered rifle and threatened to shoot people said yesterday that his son was the target of incessant bullying and that school officials did not do enough to stop the problem.
"My son was tormented," said David Lewis of Haymarket, whose son is 13 years old. ". . .Although his actions were not justified . . . bullying should not be tolerated."
Lewis, 40, spoke publicly for the first time after a closed hearing in Prince William Juvenile and Domestic Relations court, where a judge ordered his son to undergo a psychological exam, according to prosecutors. At the boy's next hearing on Nov. 24, Judge Janice Brice could release him, send him to a juvenile home or continue to hold him in a state detention facility up to age 21, they said.
If Brice sends the boy to a state detention facility, Department of Juvenile Justice officials will determine when he is released, said Prince William Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Claiborne T. Richardson II.
Last month, the seventh-grader pleaded guilty in juvenile court to three felony weapon and abduction charges stemming from the siege at Bull Run Middle School on June 18, the last day of classes.
Flanked by his wife, Naomi, and their attorney outside the courtroom, David Lewis expressed regret for his son's actions, which have haunted the community.
"My wife and I want to apologize for the actions of our son," he said, adding his gratitude for the "measured response and skill" of the Prince William County Police Department. Lewis then criticized school officials, saying they had done little to combat bullying. "It's one thing to have a zero-tolerance policy, but it's another thing to see it actually enforced," he said.
Lewis said he and his wife tried to get their son, then 12, to tell them whether there were problems at school, "but he never came out and said 'Here's what's happening, here's who's doing what.' " Friends have said the boy was bullied because of his clothing and his size.
source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A60698-2004Sep29.html
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