13-Year-Old Boy Who Kissed a Girl on a Dare, Charged with Assault

a reply to: DupontDeux

Yes by the black and white letter of the law it was assault.
But we are talking a 13 year old kid.
He deserved to get punished, forcing a kiss on a girl is a no go. School level would have done it for me, cops didn't need to get involved.

originally posted by: Sremmos80
a reply to: DupontDeux

Yes by the black and white letter of the law it was assault.
But we are talking a 13 year old kid.
He deserved to get punished, forcing a kiss on a girl is a no go. School level would have done it for me, cops didn't need to get involved.

Wouldn't surprise me if they didn't have a choice. As we have continued to push the zero tolerance policies and attitude in schools, they have responded by writing policies that dictate the teachers actions. This is so teachers have cover no matter what. We had a policy we followed it. Not following is a penalty, following removes making any type of judgement call. This environment was pushed and asked for. This is the result.

#daregreatly

2nd.

a reply to: Spacespider
Based on the article, the boy could have been charged with worse. The reality is that he did lay hand on the girl first, pulled her to him and then forced a kiss on her. That by its very nature and legal definition is the following: Assault and Battery, along with Rape.

originally posted by: Sremmos80
a reply to: DupontDeux

Yes by the black and white letter of the law it was assault.
But we are talking a 13 year old kid.
He deserved to get punished, forcing a kiss on a girl is a no go. School level would have done it for me, cops didn't need to get involved.

geez, the school should have called in both of their parents, sat everyone in one room, and have a talk ....case closed...this is ridiculous.

originally posted by: sdcigarpig
a reply to: Spacespider
Based on the article, the boy could have been charged with worse. The reality is that he did lay hand on the girl first, pulled her to him and then forced a kiss on her. That by its very nature and legal definition is the following: Assault and Battery, along with Rape.

Yes, but to arrest him at that age just ruined the rest of his life. He will now have a criminal record...when a good stern talking to about why what he did was wrong, and having him apologize to the girl and her parents would have taught him a lesson and left his future what he makes of it.

Tonight on Cops: Baltimore Edition

13 year old boy frenches girl and gets away with it? Not in Baltimore's schools he doesn't! They say every kiss begins with Kay... but In Baltimore, every kiss ends behind bars!

originally posted by: Krakatoa

originally posted by: sdcigarpig
a reply to: Spacespider
Based on the article, the boy could have been charged with worse. The reality is that he did lay hand on the girl first, pulled her to him and then forced a kiss on her. That by its very nature and legal definition is the following: Assault and Battery, along with Rape.

Yes, but to arrest him at that age just ruined the rest of his life. He will now have a criminal record...when a good stern talking to about why what he did was wrong, and having him apologize to the girl and her parents would have taught him a lesson and left his future what he makes of it.

Sealed juvenile records probably will come into play. Don't see this affecting his whole life. Probably be keeping his tongue out of others mouths unless they want it going forward though.

a reply to: jimmyx

Agreed, he needed to be told what he did was wrong.
Calling the cops and tarnishing this kids record is to far, it will fall off sure but still.

a reply to: Reallyfolks

So, when is the media story a sealed record? You can seal the official record, but this has made nwes so now it is all public information, forever. Sealing the criminal record in this case is closing the barn door after the horse has escaped (i.e. ineffective).

Don't delude yourself. This will still dog him the rest of his life, and will likely affect his actions and mental state going forward. Yes, lets create another thug for the profitable prison system. Get'em early they say....there are profits in our schools.

originally posted by: Krakatoa
a reply to: Reallyfolks

So, when is the media story a sealed record? You can seal the official record, but this has made nwes so now it is all public information, forever. Sealing the criminal record in this case is closing the barn door after the horse has escaped (i.e. ineffective).

Don't delude yourself. This will still dog him the rest of his life, and will likely affect his actions and mental state going forward. Yes, lets create another thug for the profitable prison system. Get'em early they say....there are profits in our schools.

Ok, there's a solution for that. Honestly if you want to go that route. Keep your tongue to yourself. I honestly don't believe the school had a choice to call the cops or not. Policy probably dictated it. We rushed to push zero tolerance into the schools using the evil guns as the boogeyman to do so. It encompassed much more than combating guns though as people are now finding out. Maybe people should be smarter about accepting the bs being pushed and jumping on board to support it. This is the end result. Crazy yes. Thank the zero tolerance supporters, if they had the ability to forward think or even think much at all...no issue. Won't be the last of these issues.

If someone grabbed me and stuck their tongue in my mouth; I would be the one being charged with assault and perhaps even manslaughter.

Just sayin....

I might make an exception for Bridget Hall!

a reply to: olaru12
Even if you were 13 years old and a girl did that yuo you? Right....I'm sure you would beat the crap out of her. < rolls eyes >

originally posted by: Soloprotocol
No doubt he'll be made to stand at the side of the road with a placard stating he's a little dirty pervert or something.

Well hopefully he is labeled a sex offender the rest of his life moving from town to town and never getting within 500 feet a school again...boy that will teach him not to try and kiss a girl...

originally posted by: olaru12
If someone grabbed me and stuck their tongue in my mouth; I would be the one being charged with assault and perhaps even manslaughter.

Just sayin....

I might make an exception for Bridget Hall!

If a girl grabbed my when I was 13 and stuck her tongue in my mouth I would look back at that as one of my great highlights of my youth...hehe Did the girl laugh or did she curl up in a fetal position for a life of counselling? Let the punishment fit the crime, and just maybe the punishment is he marries her one day and she gains 200 pounds..

originally posted by: Xtrozero

originally posted by: Soloprotocol
No doubt he'll be made to stand at the side of the road with a placard stating he's a little dirty pervert or something.

Well hopefully he is labeled a sex offender the rest of his life moving from town to town and never getting within 500 feet a school again...boy that will teach him not to try and kiss a girl...

I would be interested to know what the girl thinks and feels. She was after all the one grabbed and tongue. Maybe she's cool letting it be, maybe not. Craziness in the schools.

If the victim and her parents want to press charges for battery the police have to make the arrest.

The police do not have discretion in this kind of case.

If he was arrested he probably was issued a juvenile referral (notice to appear) and released on his own recognizance.

What will most likely happen is he will complete a pre-trial diversion program. This will probably consist of counseling, maybe community service, and an apology letter.

He won't have a criminal record and he won't be labeled a sexual offender.

Not sure why this story even made the news.

originally posted by: Sremmos80
a reply to: DupontDeux

Yes by the black and white letter of the law it was assault.
But we are talking a 13 year old kid.
He deserved to get punished, forcing a kiss on a girl is a no go. School level would have done it for me, cops didn't need to get involved.

Again, I am advocating jail time.

But let me clarify:

I am not sure how it would play out in the U.S., but should a similar case have found its way to court in Denmark (which it could not since he would be too young to face trial according to Danish law), the judge would have said something along the lines of "don't be a douche" and explained to him how his violation can affect the girl in quite a terrible way.

And then the case would be dropped.

THAT is what I am advocating.


The thing is, the boy has no way of knowing how emotionally robust the girl in question is. It may sound silly, but for the 'wrong' girl it could be traumatizing (odds are that some of the women on these boards can relate) and considerably affect her future. There are some kids out there with some messed up backgrounds.


I think the kid needs to learn that and I am not sure the school is equipped to teach/handle that lesson.



I hope the above makes my view seems less black and white.

Cheers.

So what is a schoolyard fight now atempted murder
If they brought the cops for things when I was in school I probly would been in juvi the whole time

Unless there's a damm good reason let schools punish children not the police

a reply to: Krakatoa
This is the paradox of today’s society and one that we should consider:

At what age should a person be held accountable for their actions? There are horror stories of young children, some younger than this young child, doing far worse, with no regret or concern for their actions. And unfortunately, I do not agree with the idea of calling the parents in and not involving the authorities.

Ask yourself this: What if it was your daughter that this happened to, would you be content to allow just a stern talking to by the parents? Or would you want more? Far too often we often look and say children make mistakes, however, in this case I would say this goes beyond what is childlike behavior and is border on adult criminal activity.

The reality is that the young boy did touch the girl, that would be grounds to call in his parents, but he went one step further, he did not let go of her, but held her and forcefully kissed her. That is assault and rape.
And if you look at the way the laws are written, the reality is that as long as he keeps his nose clean, being his age, his records will be sealed at the age of 18. So his life is not ruined as you so put it. He is not being charged as an adult, but as a juvenile offender.