Posted on 10/15/2006 3:31:37 PM PDT by calcowgirl
SACRAMENTO – Upset by the war in Iraq, Julia Wilson vented her frustrations with President Bush last spring on her Web page on MySpace.com.
She posted a picture of the president, scrawled “Kill Bush” across the top and drew a dagger stabbing his outstretched hand. She later replaced her page on the social-networking site after learning in her eighth-grade history class that such threats are a federal offense.
It was too late.
Federal authorities had found the page and placed Wilson on their checklist. They finally reached her this week in her molecular biology class.
The 14-year-old freshman was taken out of class Wednesday and questioned for about 15 minutes by two Secret Service agents. The incident has upset her parents, who said the agents should have included them when they questioned their daughter.
On Friday, the teenager said the agents' questioning led her to tears.
“I wasn't dangerous. I mean, look at what's (stenciled) on my backpack – it's a heart. I'm a very peace-loving person,” said Wilson, an honor student who describes herself as politically passionate. “I'm against the war in Iraq. I'm not going to kill the president.”
Her mother, Kirstie Wilson, said two agents showed up at the family's home Wednesday afternoon, questioned her and promised to return once her daughter was home from school.
After they left, Kirstie Wilson sent a text message to her daughter's cell phone, telling her to come straight home: “There are two men from the secret service that want to talk with you. Apparently you made some death threats against president bush.”
“Are you serious!?!? omg. Am I in a lot of trouble?” her daughter responded.
Moments later, Kirstie Wilson received another text message from her daughter saying agents had pulled her out of class.
Julia Wilson said the agents threatened her by saying she could be sent to juvenile hall for making the threat.
“They yelled at me a lot,” she said. “They were unnecessarily mean.”
Spokesmen for the Secret Service in Sacramento and Washington, D.C., said they could not comment on the case.
Wilson and her parents said the agents were justified in questioning her over her MySpace.com posting. But they said they believe agents went too far by not waiting until she was out of school.
They also said the agents should have more quickly figured out they weren't dealing with a real danger. Ultimately, the agents told the teen they would delete her investigation file.
Assistant Principal Paul Belluomini said the agents gave him the impression the girl's mother knew they were planning to question her daughter at school. There is no legal requirement that parents be notified.
“This has been an ongoing problem,” said Ann Brick, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union in San Francisco.
Former Govs. Pete Wilson and Gray Davis vetoed bills that would have required that parents give consent or be present when their children are questioned at school by law enforcement officers. A similar bill this year cleared the state Senate but died in the Assembly.
Julia Wilson plans to post a new MySpace.com page, this one devoted to organizing other students to protest the Iraq war.
“I decided today I think I will because it (the questioning) went too far,” she said.
Nope...they were kind. She's lucky, if it had been me instead of the SS....it wouldn't have been pretty.
Yep, so typical of Dem programming from the parents. No personal responsibilities....
The parents are out there trying to mitigate the wrong doing by their daughter with being critical of how the Secret Service decides to interview the suspect.
So sad. We were at the air show today, and there was very little parenting going on there, too. What's this world coming to???
If you don't want YOUR kid questioned without you present, sign onto my website and download the Letter to the Superintendent on the Parent's page. In this age of "zero tolerance" which is another word for communism, it is imperative that you exercise your parental rights.
Methinks the parents are proud... (think Cindy Sheehan).
Daddy appears to be a lefty environmental attorney... one can only imagine where she might have picked up her political 'philosophy'.
Let him sue the school on not allowing him to exercise his parental rights to be present during a questioning...he can take that one up to the Supreme Court. The schools plea 'in loco parentiis' and that is how they get away with it.
I just love it when liberals fight each other over the unconstitutional laws they help pass. They can go at it. Let freedom reign!
"It's not the job of the SS to scare and intimidate."
You are correct. The SS should have arrested and prosecuted her. What she did was against the law.
"The SS exists to guard and investigate. These agents crossed the line."
No, they did not even get near the line. Do you really believe that investigations can take place without some scaring people? How naive.
"I disagree strongly there as well. As soon as this girl realized what she did was wrong, she removed it without any external prompting. A kid who can police herself like that is a good kid."
Are you forgetting that she is the one that put it there? The only reason she took it down was in hopes of not getting into trouble. Read what her response was when her mom first IMed her. She asked if she was in a lot of trouble. She threatened the President, which is against the law for anyone of any age, and you are justifying it.
All who threaten the President should be prosecuted, not coddled.
Another glowing example of a compassionate liberal.
"Cindy Sheehan wrote in her autobiography she fantasized killing President Bush. Now come the SS didn't question for that?"
Where is the proof that they didn't question Sheehan?
"What if her website said, "Kill Hillary?"
That is not protesting, that is a threat. Big difference.
That is not protesting, that is a threat. Big difference.
How is it different to say "Kill Bush" or "Kill Hillary" or "Kill *Anyone*?"
It's the SS job to check her out and that is what they did. They did the right thing.
Yeah, she should be languishing away in prison. That will certainly set everything right. My disgust is reaching ever new heights these days.
Let me guess, you would have roughed up a little?
"Add "liar" to the list. The Secret Service doesn't go around yelling at 14 year olds, even if they's like to."
Very true that SS do not yell at people, but most law enforcement persons I have met do talk firmly. A 14 year old who is upset might confuse firmness with anger and anger with yelling.
"How is it different to say "Kill Bush" or "Kill Hillary" or "Kill *Anyone*?"
None of the items you quoted above are protest. Every one of them are threats. The difference I was refering to was protest versus threat, not one of the above was a threat and another was not.
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