Attorney: Playground case should be dropped

Two young girls are accused of brutally attacking a classmate in Pa.

 

 

updated 2:24 p.m. CT, Thurs., April. 10, 2008

ERIE, Pa. - Two young girls accused of brutally attacking another girl on a playground are too emotionally immature to understand the criminal charges against them and the charges should be dismissed, their attorneys said.

 

The girls, ages 10 and 11, face aggravated assault and other charges for the attack on another 10-year-old girl at an elementary school playground the evening of April 3. The girls are accused of stomping on the victim and breaking her hip, police said.

 

Erie County Public Defender Tony Logue says he will ask a Juvenile Court judge to dismiss criminal charges against the 10-year-old girl.

 

"How can my attorney effectively communicate with his clients given the client's chronological age versus emotional age?" Logue said.

 

Attorney Bruce Sandmeyer said he has similar concerns for his client, the 11-year-old, and expects to file a similar motion in the coming days.

 

"My client is just 11 years old and just an elementary school student," Sandmeyer said.

The lawyers said the case should be treated as a dependency case, not a delinquency case. In legal terms, a judge who rules a child is dependent can place the child under the supervision of the Erie County Office of Children and Youth.

 

A delinquency case, which is what the girls currently face, is the juvenile court equivalent of a criminal case. If the girls are found delinquent, the equivalent of a guilty verdict, they could be confined in a juvenile detention facility or otherwise be under the supervision of the court until they turn 21.

 

Ian Murray, another lawyer for the 10-year-old girl, said she and her family feel deep remorse for the attack. "This is tragic for everyone, especially the victim," Murray said.

 

Family members of the 11-year-old suspect say she is an "A" and "B" student who has never been in trouble before.

 

The injured girl said the other girls pulled her off the monkey bars and attacked after she told the girls to stop splashing water on her 8-year-old sister in the school playground. Police said the victim was repeatedly stomped on the head and legs.

 

The victim remains hospitalized and is expected to undergo at least one week of rehabilitation at a hospital. She has three pins in her hip to keep the bones in place and may eventually need a hip replacement, her mother said.

 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24052416/

 

As a mother of a 9 year old girl.  I HOLLAR!  BULLSHIT!  I don't care what state, I don't care if the girls are purple or mauve colored skinned, I don't care if the girls are Pagan, Christian, Muslim, Buddist, or what have you............they KNEW what they were doing!  I don't care if they were "good girls"  and got straight A's or if they were "bad girls" and got straight F's.  They KNEW what they were doing.  So they don't understand the court system and all the big words.  Got news for folks, unless your in a profession of the justice system, NOBODY knows the court system and the big words because it is all sooooooooooo complicated.

 

Their parents get lawyers for them, the lawyers and the parents EXPLAIN things to them in words they can understand!  They need to be held accountable NOW or they are going to continue this behavor of snapping for stupid shit!

 

I didn't read the whole story to my kids, but I think it is awfully interesting that I explained the jist of the story to my 9 year old daughter and 8 year old son.  I asked them what would happen to them if they were stupid enough to do something like this.  If my 9 and 8 year old can look at me in a shocked manner and go:

 

"We would go to jail for hurting another kid that badly.  And if we didn't go to jail we would be someplace for just kids in jail, having to correct our naughty behavor."

 

I also asked them if anything else would happen to them besides going into jail.  And this is what they said.

 

"Well, since we aren't old enough to pay for everything like lawyers, our parents would probably get told to pay for our laywers and pay for the other kid's operation if she had one.  And their parents might have to pay the other girl's family some money to say sorry."

 

So notice they don't completely understand the process of the court system, but they do understand a good portion of it.  And before anyone says I told them, WRONG!  I cleared some things up after they proved that they could understand the situation and that is it.  Make those lil girls accountable NOW for their behavor.

 

 
   

 


 
 
atticsmouse on
Re: Two young girls are accused of brutally attacking a classmate in PA
Well shit!!! Poor kids didn't know what they were doing was wrong... BULLSHIT if they didn't realize it was wrong, then they really need to take a deeper look into those girls' family life.
At 10 I knew hitting someone was wrong, much less beating them while they were laying on the ground most likely screaming, crying and begging them to stop.
Those girls first of all need a sound SPANKING, yes a good old fashioned asswhippin. These are the type of girls that end up in gangs at 12 and 13 years old.
Then they need to make ammends for what they have done. Their parents will be held legally responsible for the bills (believe me I KNOW this one) The victim will have to go through not only physical therapy but you know shes going to need mental help now too.

Again I have to wonder, would the kids these days be so violent had their parents not been those wishey washey dont spank your children types? Probably NOT, notice crime rate has skyrocketed since the whole "time out vs spanking" bs started. Makes you wonder huh?

So when I win the lotto I am buying my own fargin island so I don't have to deal with this crap
niassa on
Re: Two young girls are accused of brutally attacking a classmate in PA
Oh I agree that the whole time out crap is contributing to the corruption of many kids!  The do gooders who are trying to help out the kids who are actually getting hurt now go after the kids whose parents are just trying to keep them in line.  I am a spanking parent and dayum proud of it.  And you know what?  My kids VERY RARELY get spanked but when I start talking well your being a fool, your not doing what your told to do, and you know if you do that your going to get consequences, they know they are on the road to a spanking.  And they usually tone their shit down.  Granted they also know I am a Mamma that doesn't put up with triffling, bullshit either.  They do something wrong and they know it, I make them take the consequences as long as it is fair!

 

Just ask Coltin, he and his lil I am giong to hit ppl stage in 1st grade was driving me up a wall.  I finally had enough of it, told the principal and the teacher he hits one person you call me and I will deal with him.  No more of this lecture and trying to scare a hard headed lil boy because he will give you what you want response wise.  After the first time I went up to the school, he stopped.  Granted, I yanked his ass out of class infront of ALL his friends, marched his lil butt down to the counslor's office and closed the door.  Then I dropped his pants and spanked him bare assed 3 times.  When I was done I pulled his pants up, asked him if he would like a repeat of this down the line and he said no.  So I remined him, he lays hands on ANYONE other than defending himself via them hitting him first, I would lay my hand upside his ass.  We didn't have a problem with him hitting anyone after that. 

 

I also took DeLaney's happy lil ass down to the county holding cell and made her sit in there for 4 hours cause she liked to snitch coins out of my purse.  Having a county officer talk to her in TX didn't phase her, spanking didn't phase her, so I introduced her to Auntie Joyce.  Auntie Joyce is about 6 foot, a pretty but built like a brick house Indian friend of the families who was working County Lock up and Dispatch.  Auntie Joyce, handcuffed her, made her go talk to the County sheriff in handcuffs, and marched her down to the empty women's holding cell near the office.  Gave her one phone call, where she called me crying her lil eyes out, and I told her to shut up and sit there for another few hours.  I was at the cafe with Mammo.  Needless to say DeLaney NOW keeps her lil paws out of my purse.  And she was 7 when I did that shit to her!

tchmymnd on
Re: Two young girls are accused of brutally attacking a classmate in PA
First of all, I would like to know where the Staff were, that these kids were able to stomp over and over. I been out there on recess duty, and have seen the staff stand in a circl and chat. There are not enough staff out with these kids as it is, least here anyways, they HAVE to keep their eyes and ears out.

Second of all, I have so many times felt that it's just wrong to throw these kids into jail for some of these things, they are so young. But I'm telling you, I have seen it again and again too. Where they are ran through the juvenile department, and get off with a probation officer, an continue to get in trouble over and over and nothing else happens. I have a 12 yr old nephew, that this is happening with. So many times he should have been locked up and never once. HIS mom, doesn't even contact his probation officer when she should. And then of course my step daughter who is now 19 and still is seen as a juvenile, and keeps getting slaps on the wrists and a couple days away where she doesn't have to cook her own food.

I think we need to get harder on these kids, and we need to teach it and preach it like we do safe sex, so these kids, just like yours, can grasp better what they are going to lose out on. It's time to stop making bullying and violence among kids a game for them.
niassa on
Re: Two young girls are accused of brutally attacking a classmate in PA
Oh I agree that it isn't all the kids fault and they shouldn't be in jail for stupid shit, but when the stupid shit escalates then they need punisment.  Where were the teachers?  If they say it was afterschool, I still hollar bullshit on the teacher part!  Every school my kids have attended from LARGE elementy schools to the small school they are in now, have teachers posted outside until EVERY child is picked up, if the children weren't picked up they were rounded up and herded back into the school to wait in the hallway till they are picked up.

 

They really need to start makign not just the kids held accountable and their parents also!

tchmymnd on
Re: Two young girls are accused of brutally attacking a classmate in PA
Yup thats right, I have had back door duty. And we had to shoo the kids home. They couldn't stay around and play, they had to leave.

YES! the parents need to be held accountable more. So often parents all react innocently, when they know darn well, they have not ever held their child accountable for anything. And it's really no surprise when their child goes off.

 
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