Bad News Keeps Coming for 2nd Grader Suspended for Chewing His Pop-Tart into a ‘Gun’ #JHedzWorlD
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It was only a few short months after one of the most horrific shootings that our country has faced — the massacre of 20 children and 6 adults at Sandy Hook Elementary — that another “gun”-related incident swept across national headlines.
This time, however, it involved a 2nd grade Maryland boy who had chewed his Pop-Tart breakfast pastry into the shape of a gun while at school — an action that prompted administrators to suspend the child for 2 days.
If the case had Americans fired up the first time around, as WJZ reports, then this the newest ruling certainly won’t calm things down.
According to Liberals, a Pop Tart gun is too powerful and reason enough for tough disciplinary action.#NRA #Lemmings pic.twitter.com/W03XhHoFxR
— Max Capacitē (@DavidBugnon) June 13, 2016
The story began in March 2013, when then 7-year-old Josh Welch took several bites out of the now-infamous Pop-Tart, shouted “Look, I made a gun!” and then pretended to shoot at some of his classmates.
For three years, Welch’s father B.J. has been fighting to expunge the 2-day suspension the boy was given, arguing that it was “unnecessarily harsh” and could affect his son’s future if it remains on his record.
However, Anne Arundel County Circuit Judge Ronald Silkworth ruled late last month that the punishment was appropriate and would remain, calling the boy’s actions “disruptive.”
But the Welch family’s attorney, Robin Ficker, disagrees:
“No violence, no real weapon, no ammunition…
It will be on his record in school and every time he goes into a new grade. There’s a presumption he did something wrong and he’s a bad kid.”
Meanwhile, for B.J. Welch, the punishment still doesn’t make sense:
“It wasn’t a big deal to him. He figured it could go bang bang and he was just playing around…
I don’t see a reason for it to be there, and that’s been my goal since day one.”
The young Welch, who is now 11, will be entering middle school this year — and is probably wondering how this situation will impact him at his new school.
In the years since, Welch’s case has prompted a number of reactions, including the introduction of bills in Florida, Nevada, and Texas that have sought to protect students from any punishments stemming from playing with pop-tart guns, keychain guns, and other non-lethal, non-firearms toys — measures that proponents referred to as “common sense.”
The boy was also given a free lifetime membership by the National Rifle Association.
In addition, Welch’s suspension has sparked a multitude of comparisons to the well-known case of “Clock Kid” Ahmed Mohamed, who — after bringing a homemade clock to school — was placed in handcuffs when a teacher thought it looked like a bomb.
@yesmam47 How about a pop tart shaped like a gun? Does that count? @jimbearNJ @thehill pic.twitter.com/2BX0Joq9WZ
— Gender-Neutral Stick (@Stick_Man_Says) September 19, 2015
Though Mohamed’s case also captured national attention, the reaction was notably different, including his receiving an invitation to the White House from President Obama himself.
As for Josh Welch, his lawyer says he is not discouraged by this newest ruling:
“There’s a way to go through a stone wall if you keep pressing and are persistent.”
Ficker adds that, in the past, he has represented children caught in similar situations who have eventually had their suspensions lifted.
The next step, Ficker says, will be to appeal the ruling, taking it one step higher, to the Court of Special Appeals.
The post Bad News Keeps Coming for 2nd Grader Suspended for Chewing His Pop-Tart into a ‘Gun’ appeared first on Independent Journal Review.
Bad News Keeps Coming for 2nd Grader Suspended for Chewing His Pop-Tart into a ‘Gun’ #JHedzWorlD
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