http://www.sixshot.com/news/8653/
The parents of five black male students who were expelled from a Detroit high school for flashing fake guns and fake marijuana on their MySpace pages are planning on taking legal action.
According to The Associated Press, the students expulsion took place on November 7th after a parent sent a letter to Belleville High School officials complaining about the teenagers posting pictures of themselves ‘scowling around a pool table laid out with long-barreled guns, and holding a half-filled baggy and a handgun in the back of a limo’.
The parents of the expelled students have argued that the guns weren’t real and the baggies contained snipped parsley. They claim the kids were play acting for a CD cover for their demo .
“It was disturbing to us too, when we first seen the pictures,” said one parent. “ But once I found out what the picture was for, I thought this is OK. It's for a CD.”
Pete Lazaroff, the superintendent for Van Buren Public Schools, which is a parent body for Belleville High School , said that discipline had to be taken whether the guns were real or not.
“I'm not going to take chances with the safety of our kids,” he explained. “To put these photos out on the World Wide Web is a danger not only to the students in school but to these kids.”
The lawyer representing the five families , Cliff Woodwards, revealed he will file a lawsuit against Belleville next week for reinstatement and damages of $1 million for each student.
Woodwards and the parents believe the expulsion was racially motivated.
The parents of five black male students who were expelled from a Detroit high school for flashing fake guns and fake marijuana on their MySpace pages are planning on taking legal action.
According to The Associated Press, the students expulsion took place on November 7th after a parent sent a letter to Belleville High School officials complaining about the teenagers posting pictures of themselves ‘scowling around a pool table laid out with long-barreled guns, and holding a half-filled baggy and a handgun in the back of a limo’.
The parents of the expelled students have argued that the guns weren’t real and the baggies contained snipped parsley. They claim the kids were play acting for a CD cover for their demo .
“It was disturbing to us too, when we first seen the pictures,” said one parent. “ But once I found out what the picture was for, I thought this is OK. It's for a CD.”
Pete Lazaroff, the superintendent for Van Buren Public Schools, which is a parent body for Belleville High School , said that discipline had to be taken whether the guns were real or not.
“I'm not going to take chances with the safety of our kids,” he explained. “To put these photos out on the World Wide Web is a danger not only to the students in school but to these kids.”
The lawyer representing the five families , Cliff Woodwards, revealed he will file a lawsuit against Belleville next week for reinstatement and damages of $1 million for each student.
Woodwards and the parents believe the expulsion was racially motivated.
