Full question:
My daughter has been given a possible 5 day suspension with a threat of expolsion for bringing a knife to school, She brought it because they were doing a French project & the teacher asked thme to bring in 'utensils' to prepare the food. The day of the event the principal saw my daughter with the knife & the fruit, took the knife & escortef her to the French classroom. He gave the knife to the teacher & told the teacher to give the knife back to my daughter at the end of the day to take it home. The teacher never gave my daughter the knife until a few weeks later. Her class is in the middle of the day so she had to place the knjife in her locker. She promptly forgot it was ther & while cleaning her locker yesterday it fell out & the principal was walking by again, comfiscated it & called us to say that she was being expelled for up to 5 days ith a possible expolsion. I asked him why he or the teacher did not confiscate it & call us then & there to pick up the knife. Where was there concern then for the welfare of the other students & teachers. (which is what he kept telling us his job is). IN my opinion, yes I want my child to be safe & understand the need for no tolerance; however, where is their responsibility to take the knife from her & remove the threat? They are supposed to be the adults & be guarding the chicken coop. I feel that if they had taken the knife that day - we would not even be having this conversation.I should mention that my child is 18 & a senior in high school scheduled to gradute in June.While we were waiting to go in to the conference room, we overheard one teacher say to another- how many times have I told you to keep your knives at home. My daughter was really upset by that. They are talking about her amongst the faculty. They tried & convicted her before they knew all the facts & they admitted that. However, they still suspended her. They told us they were only following procedure. I wanted to know if they would give back a rifle if they encountered on in the hands of a student. What are my daughters rights here?Thank you
- Category: Schools
- Date:
- State: Pennsylvania
Answer:
This situation highlights a troubling aspect of zero tolerance policies in schools. Your daughter is facing consequences for following a teacher's instructions to bring a knife for a French project. The principal initially took the knife and instructed the teacher to return it to your daughter at the end of the day, which raises questions about the enforcement of zero tolerance. If the knife was deemed a threat, it should not have been returned to her on school grounds.
When the teacher failed to return the knife promptly, your daughter inadvertently left it in her locker. This oversight is not her fault; it stems from the school's mishandling of the situation. The principle of estoppel may apply here, which means the school cannot penalize your daughter for relying on their instructions. The fact that she forgot the knife in her locker was a foreseeable outcome given the circumstances.
If I were in your position, I would consider consulting a local attorney to discuss potential legal action against the school for this unfair treatment. An attorney could help you seek a temporary restraining order against the suspension and possibly remove it from her record. Additionally, bringing media attention to the situation might encourage the school to reconsider their stance. Users can search for state-specific legal templates at .
This content is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Legal statutes mentioned reflect the law at the time the content was written and may no longer be current. Always verify the latest version of the law before relying on it.