Story Archive

Pointed Objections

Jordan Bennett, 8, has been suspended from Harmony Community School in Osceola County, Fla., for playing “cops and robbers” with another boy. Because of the guns, school officials say. “He had nothing in his hand. It was a finger gun, a pretend gun,” says his mother, Bonnie. “He didn’t threaten violence. He didn’t utter words that were inappropriate. He made a sound and used his fingers and that was it.” His mother is outraged that the boy is now labeled a “violent offender” and promises to take the case to court, if necessary, to clear his record. But school officials won’t relent, saying the school’s Code of Conduct “prohibits students from playing with invisible guns.” (RC/WFTV Orlando) ...Again unfair, since school officials are operating under invisible qualifications.