Stephanie Lovett-Bowman, Thursday, September 23, 2010 | Filed under: First Amendment
A federal court recently upheld the constitutionality of a school district's suspension of a fifth grader who wrote a violent message on an in-school assignment. In
Cuff v. Valley Central School District, the 10-year-old student's teacher assigned him to write a "wish" that would be publicly displayed during an open house for parents. The student wrote "blow up the school with all the teachers in it," prompting a suspension. The student later told school officials that he was only joking.
The Southern District of New York concluded the First Amendment did not protect the student's speech because the school district reasonably determined the threat was likely to cause a substantial disruption. The student had a lengthy disciplinary history of violent tendencies and similar past disturbing writings. The student's capacity to carry out the threat, young age, and the fact that the threat was written in response to a school assignment were immaterial.
To read the court's opinion, go to
http://www.spencerfane.com/_FileLibrary/FileImage/Cuff%20v.%20Valley%20Central%20School%20Dist..pdf