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Only the Name Has Been Changed

Classes still hadn’t started at Lanier Middle School in Gwinnett County, Ga., but Jack Persyn, 13, already had a problem: while at the Chess Club meeting, he found a 1.5" knife in his bag that his aunt had given him. The resulting report from school officials notes that the eight-grader had “accidentally” brought the knife to school and “immediately self-reported” the contraband to his teacher, so therefore his suspension for violating the school’s “it’s not zero tolerance” weapons policy was just four days. “We can’t ignore the fact that there is a weapon on campus somewhere that someone can use,” said school district spokesman Jore Quintana, claiming the case is a safety issue. “I hate that Jack felt like he did what was he was supposed to do, and for him these are dire consequences,” says his mother, Angie. But it could have been worse: several years ago the school district “altered” its policy to reduce the suspension when a transgression is “self reported.” Before that, Jack’s suspension would have been 10 days. (RC/WXIA Atlanta) ...See? They fixed it.
Original Publication Date: 29 January 2012
This story is in True’s book collections, in Volume 18.

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