TRUANCY COURT WAS NEXT – “WOULD YOU CALL THIS CRUEL & UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT” (Part 2)

TRUANCY COURT WAS NEXT – PART 2 OF “WOULD YOU CALL THIS CRUEL & UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT”

First, let me say Thank You for all the comments!  I really appreciate all  your opinions.

In case you didn’t read Part 1: WOULD YOU CALL THIS CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT

This truancy case happened in Georgia. It’s not a story I got off the internet.  I know the people it happened to.  The young man has never got in any other trouble.  He’s just had trouble getting to school for the last couple years.  He’s a very good kid. He’s kind and good to his parents and friends.  He’s compassionate and understanding.  And he’s really smart.

Last week they went to court.  It was supposed to be for a review, but they still didn’t have the psycological test results.  As it turned out, the therapist decided she wanted his teachers to fill out some forms, telling her more about him. The parents had arranged this about three months ago with the school, and then the therapist told them not to worry about it.  She said she didn’t need the teachers to do those.  (Remember, I know this all to be true,I know the people, very well) .  So the parents cancelled the meeting with the teachers.  The  judge sent the therapist a paper saying she had to have the test results in by the time they went to court last week.  Well she didn’t get them into the judge, instead she wrote a letter saying the parents weren’t cooperating and she didn’t have the teachers forms yet!  She out and out lied, saying the parents weren’t doing what they were supposed to.

It’s all just a mess.  It’s very hard to get it all down here, and explain it all.

In court the judge asked the parents why they hadn’t cooperated.  Well they were just shocked, had no idea what she was even talking about.  The judge had to explain what the therapist had said.  Of course the parents told her (the judge) that it wasn’t true.  But, ya know, they tend to believe a therapist over parents.

I’m sure she does see some “questionable” parents in Juvenile Court, but it’s not fair to think all parents aren’t taking good care of their kids.

So the parents told the judge how they had arranged for the teachers to fill out the forms.  She didn’t say much, who knows if she believed them.  Well, she did say, she didn’t know what to believe, people were telling her different things.

The parents tried to talk to the judge about how freezing cold the detention cell was.  She was smiling (almost laughing) and just blew it off.  She didn’t care at all.  She told them they could bring a suite against the city. She just said something about “he shouldn’t be here in the first place”.  She seemed to think it was just not important.

Well, she ended up putting the boy under an Order Of Protection.  In other words, he was protected against his parents!  They are not allowed to let him stay home from school.  And if he has any unexcused days, the parents could be given community service or jail.  They also, have to get with the therapist and get any papers she wants filled out by the teachers.  These parents take very good care of their kids, so this isn’t a problem.  It’s just insulting.  But it did show the boy how serious the situation is.

His anxiety has really flared up a lot during all this, over the last few weeks.  On that fourth day, in detention, he said he got real hot and sweaty and felt “out of it”, like he might pass out.  (It was really cold in the cell, so he got hot from anxiety).  I’d call that a panic attack.

The judge ordered the child to make up any and all missed work, have his teachers fill out a small questionaire every day, go to a class every Tuesday night from 5:30 – 7:30 and not miss school unless he is very very sick.  The class is called Teen Foundations.  They talk about life and work, cost of living, things like that.  It’s a group of kids who also got in trouble with the court.  It sounds like a good thing, really.  The only thing about it, is, some of the kids are there because they got in trouble because they were doing drugs.  So they don’t want him to make friends there, really.

The parents are meeting with his teachers next week to see what can be done about missed work and to improve his grades.

Then around the first of Feb. they will go to court again and hopefully things will be going good, so it will just be a review.  They think things will be all done by then, so there shouldn’t be anymore problems.

The child has said he’s going to school no matter how bad he feels.  Of course, he will be getting counseling.

So, that’s about it.  Thank you all for reading and commenting.