BY MIKE CETERA
On its face, charging a kid with a crime that could land him in prison for as long as 30 years for lighting a roll of toilet paper on fire seems a bit like overkill. People convicted of reckless homicide have been given less time.
But when you consider what could have happened after the 17-year-old allegedly started a blaze in a bathroom earlier this week at West Aurora High School, such a penalty seems far less extreme.
The tough penalty for setting a fire at school is relatively new in Illinois. With a near unanimous vote, lawmakers five years ago made aggravated arson of school property a Class X crime, allowing for the first time prison terms of 6 to 30 years.
The legislation was sponsored in the House by a teacher turned politician, so it's a good bet she has a sense of what dangers such foolishness pose.
Like a fire that killed 95 people in 1958 at Our Lady of the Angels Catholic School in Chicago.
Although the cause has never been officially determined, all indications point to arson. A boy (age 10 at the time, and a fifth grader in room 206) later confessed to setting the blaze, but subsequently recanted his confession. He was more afraid of confessing to his mother and step-father than to the police.
It's hard to imagine such a tragedy could occur today. As a result of the deadly blaze, school design and fire safety codes were changed throughout the country. But that doesn't mean a school fire can't be deadly.
No one with a sense of justice would want to see this kid go to prison for 30 years if convicted. It's true that most court cases never make it to trial, so it wouldn't be suprising to see this one get resolved with a plea agreement that acknowledges what could have been without damning this kid for life.
I highly recommend To Sleep With The Angels, the book that the website and Wikipedia entry you linked to uses as a primary source. An outstanding book.
The continuing 'threats' being sent, posted or scrawled on bathroom walls also is a serious concern. Such pranks and stunts can cause major problems for those responsible, along with the on-going anxiety, disruptions and community issues they cause.
Given the consequences, what should/can parents do to drive home the points to their kids to never cross the (ever shifting) lines or even approach them? Given the recent incident at East High from the Facebook or Myspace posting, kids should know that 'blowing off steam' or goof'n with their friends can be taken totally out of context by school authorities and law enforcement.
Schools and law enforcement need to take reported 'threats' seriously and take the steps required to ensure that safety is paramount. If they 'blew off' or downplay a threat and it turns out to be genuine, the consequences would be severe.
Don't see an end to these problems anytime soon, hoping this 'fad' will fade over time...but know the problems of violence in our communities and schools will be with us ever present.
Once more the bleeding hearts are screaming to be lenient with these so called pranksters. Endangering the life of other kids in school by starting a fire is not my i8dea of a prank. It's about time we made these punks assume resposibility for their actions.
While the student lost his brain and thought it would be "funny", it wasn't. Just ask the students who were locked in classes, went the entire day with out food, and most were clueless as to what was going on. As terrible as it was for my kids that day and as much as I believe he should be punished, I think the punishment at the worst to too severe.
When my child had a note tape to a junior high locker threatening to severe bodily harm not only to the student, but to friends and to our home, the student that did it and was sincere was taken away from school with the police and he was expelled for the year. He was back the following year.
My child still has fears because of being singled out, the student at the high school probably was bored,looking for "fun" and he wasn't picking on any one person and probably didn't even think past the prank. For this he can spend in jail 30 years?????
The message I see is that if you pick on a person with malicious intent, you'll get suspended, but if you pull a prank, you'll get 30 years to think about it.
Send the little arsonist to jail. He endangered the lives of hundreds of students and teachers not to mention possible property damage worth millions of dollars. That is a criminal act.
Jeff Ward's column today was spot-on concerning these issues
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/news/opinions/922005,2_4_AU30_WARD_S1.article