That is exactly what I debate. This was not a life-ending accusation, that Mayfield inexplicably ended his life over. The whole thing is a tragedy, and not one that a middle school student could foresee when he accused or recanted.... It was a conflict that the student might have thought debatable.
Your focus on the student's immigration status and welfare status as somehow relevant is questionable and thread hijacking. Pet-issue folks love to do that, but there are better threads where immigration as an issue actually makes sense.
Personally, I think Mayfield's act was extreme, but that should have no basis on assessing the seriousness of the kid's own offense.
Every headline screams to me that the Roanoke community viewed the accusation of assault very seriously:
His reputation sullied, teacher commits suicide
False accusation leads to tragedy
Ronald Lee Mayfield Jr., 55, had been accused of assaulting a student
If an accusation "sullies" a teachers reputation, results in his suspension from his classroom, I consider that a serious accusation.
And, because I view it as a serious accusation, one that was false, based on a lie -- I believe the kid should be punished. And severely. I take no pity on his disabled status, the school system apparently did not consider they knew his was a troublemaker when they suspended Mayfield.
They could have said, this kid is a troublemaker, let's give Mayfield every benefit of the doubt while we investigate. But, they didn't. The school system went whole hog from the outset because they too considered it a serious accusation.
If the easiest way it to expel him and his family from the country, then I don't see that as hijacking the immigration issue. Everyday in America prosecutors take the easiest path to a meaningful sentence they can. This case is no different in that respect.
However, now that we've learned about this family -- I think its fair to review why they're here, and whether they are contributors to our society, or they're here only as beneficiaries and a burden to taxpaying Americans.
What is bigoted or unfair about that ??
There are about 4 Billion poor people in the world, trying to save all of them will lead to our own demise -- that's just a practical fact.