Now, all you have to do is dig up what the State law regarding an exaggerated perception of a physical altercation.
Kid -- "He punched me."
Teacher -- "No, I shoved him."
"For example, you challenged me when I said the kid was a chronic menace, despite the article that clearly substantiated he was."
What's funny is how you mistrust those parts of the articles that do not support your beliefs, and take others to be Gospel. How much of a "menace" is a wheelchair-bound thirteen year-old?
What he is in all likelihood is a disciplinary problem. It quite probably has something to do with anger at being wheelchair bound.
Illegal aliens should be deported, not all immigrants are illegal aliens. Certainly, I've never encountered an illegal alien from India.
Maybe, sometime in the future, Mayfield's family may be thinking about the system's deep pockets, but I doubt that it would be this close to his death.
"Because he has an apparently well-documented history of misbehavior for the 27 months he has been in the Roanoke school system - he would not be permitted to attend my daughters' schools."
If I recall your post, one teacher said that he had disrupted her class the previous year, and the rest of the testimonials came from Mayfield himself.
There you go again.
Believing the parts of the story you want to believe.
Maybe so - but, if I am -- you're doing the same thing.
None of the articles said the kid, or his parents, dropped the charge. The articles said the kid made a false accusation.
There is a difference.
Until I see it reported differently, I choose to believe the kid made a false accusation.
I do not agree with your characterization that the dispute revolves around the resolution of whether it was a shove or a punch.
The kid probably has issues related to his disability, some folks do I guess, but most learn to deal with it without anger or disruptive behavior.
I wouldn't tolerate it, other kids shouldn't be subjected to it, and it provides no excuse for making false accusations, if that is what happened.
You haven't seen any Indian illegal aliens ??
Do they look any differently than a legal Indian immigrant, wear a warning label or something ??
Like some of the terrorists who overstayed legitimate visas, I do know Indians who have done the same thing. But, the Indians I know personally have applications pending for legal status. Just as I suspect, but do not know, that Abdul's family has applied for political asylum.
While I note you agree illegal aliens should be expelled, I remind you I've already stipulated the family's alien status is not relevant to this issue.
As others on this thread have noted, many people make false accusations and the law deals with them accordingly -- I see no reason why this kid should be treated any differently, regardless of his creed, ethnicity or physical condition.
However, obviously you feel differently, and that's OK, I guess.
Without citing any specific cases, it does frustrate me generally that there are folks who rationalize guilt away by attributing an offense of the law, or societal mores, to a misfortune of societal neglect
We've both delved deeply into the aspects of this particular case far beyond the sketchy facts presented, based on our own assumptions and interpretation of what really happened using our individual life experiences as a guide.
Not having the time, nor frankly the interest, to explore every detail of this case to its ultimate resolution, I'll just say -- I don't believe you and I will ever reach an agreement about the greater moral arguments represented to us here by this one example.
The framework for my personal morality doesn't contain very many shades of gray. While I am compassionate, emotion alone does not rule my judgment.
In my eyes, being hungry doesn't give one the right to rob a bank. While the law contains latitude to temper judgment based on unique circumstances, I wouldn't excuse unlawful behavior on grounds of compassion. I'll leave to the Victor Hugos of the world license to emote endlessly about injustice.
Like the fable of seven blind men who each "see" an elephant differently -- apparently we have a different vision of humanity.