The angst surrounding two seven-year-old students who were suspended for pointing pencils at one another and making gun sounds has led the Suffolk School Board in Suffolk, Va., to rethink its zero tolerance policy on firearms and weapons.
One of the kids, Christopher Marshall, claims that he was merely pretending to be his father, a former marine, when he used a pencil as a faux gun, WAVY-TV reports. TheBlaze first told you about his story last month.
Now, under amended policies, so-called "ordinary objects" will no longer be considered weapons, meaning that the pencil, under the new policy, wouldn't be considered a threat.
Moving forward, under new rules, the school district will allow school principals to determine punishment on a special case-specific basis. Rather than a zero tolerance policy, officials will examine the punishment and the crime more in-depth, looking at student age, intention and the weapon being used in each instance.
Christopher's father, Paul, said that he and his family deserve an apology.
"The school board could have done the right thing, not just on paper like they did at the meeting last night, but they could have actually apologized, said 'hey you know it's unfortunate that it happened, but we're coming to you to say things will be changed to mitigate the problem in the future,’” he said in an interview with WAVY-TV.
The school board voted unanimously on the new provisions.
(H/T: Opposing Views)
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Billy Hallowell
Billy Hallowell is the director of communications and content for PureFlix.com, whose mission is to create God-honoring entertainment that strengthens the faith and values of individuals and families. He's a former senior editor at Faithwire.com and the former faith and culture editor at TheBlaze. He has contributed to FoxNews.com, The Washington Post, Human Events, The Daily Caller, Mediaite, and The Huffington Post, among other outlets. Visit his website (billyhallowell.com) for more of his work.
