Special-Ed Student Who Recorded Bullies Accused of Felony Wiretapping

[Pozz]

Sympathy and empathy has nothing to do with it. His safety was at risk and he took measures to eliminate the risk to that safety, and for that he is being punished. The reason we have judges who are human is so they can look at how the law is being applied and use their own judgement to consider if he acted with malicious or harmful intent in this case, and judge him basedon his intentions and his circumstances. He was clearly doing it to protect himself here, just as anyone who is assaulted and fights back isn't charged with assault themselves.

When people just accept hypocritical laws and utterly stupid shit like zero tolerance rules with the logic "you have to accept it" you are just asking to be taken advantage of.

Problem here is he prepared (and as such intended) to break the law, preparation disqualifies selfdefense.

As I said, I really hope they can take the principal/school to court from negligence as they were informed about the situation, but what he did was a punishable offense.

[Collegeguy]

Know your state's laws before recording people without their consent. 12 of them require consent from all parties, not just one. That goes for smart phones and google glass users as well.

[Deleted]

Can anybody tell me when it was that MMO-C became the site for US controversial news?

They are leaving themselves wide open, no wonder everyone, their grandmother and her friends dog get a quick jab in.

[Arlon]

The laws don't make a mockery of justice, people do that. In a perfect world, the ones at the institution with any authority would've stepped in and taking care of the situation instead of letting it escalate into slightly desperate attempts of being left alone.

We don´t live in a perfect world. That´s what makes your belief silly. You advocate absolutes in something that has none.

[Theodon]

Problem here is he prepared (and as such intended) to break the law, preparation disqualifies selfdefense.

As I said, I really hope they can take the principal/school to court from negligence as they were informed about the situation, but what he did was a punishable offense.

I'm questioning why he should be punished for it. The law may say it's wrong, but the judge can provide leniency here and not punish him. The circumstances around it are documented enough to allow for that surely.

[Conspicuous Cultist]

http://www.vocativ.com/culture/socie...y-wiretapping/

"In Pennsylvania, a high school sophomore with developmental disabilities was convicted of a crime after recording classmates threatening to "pull down his pants"

"After being regularly shoved and tripped, and nearly burned with a cigarette lighter, a tormented special-needs student in Pennsylvania decided to take matters into his own hands. He secretly recorded the abuse on his school-issued iPad, and his mother eventually submitted the evidence to the school’s principal. But instead of punishing the teenage tyrants caught on tape, administrators decided to call the police, who threatened the 15-year-old boy with felony wiretapping, but later reduced the charge to disorderly conduct. He was found guilty on March 19."

"Despite his emotional testimony and his mother’s pleas, the Pennsylvania student was eventually found guilty, though he plans to appeal the ruling during his next court appearance on April 29. The bullies were never punished."

Welcome to America.

I really would pay money to know what goes through these people's heads.

"I would've dismissed his claim for bullying because it's his word against a mob of assholes. But now that he has video proof? Gonna call the police and get him for felony wire taping!"

It really scares me that these people are in positions of power no matter how irrelevant it will be when he graduates.

[Pool of the Dead]

Being America, the Kid probably should've just shot them to death and explained to the courts he feared for his life.

At least he would've walked free and been free of the bullies.

[Pozz]

We don´t live in a perfect world. That´s what makes your belief silly. You advocate absolutes in something that has none.

We wouldn't need laws in a perfect world, you don't see me advocating that

I obviously used it as an extreme and sorry for that. The fault is with the school, but that doesn't give anyone the right to break the law.

[TEHPALLYTANK]

Know your state's laws before recording people without their consent. 12 of them require consent from all parties, not just one. That goes for smart phones and google glass users as well.

So because the victim in the situation broke the law his abuser(s) are now excused from being punished for any wrongdoing? Hurray America...

[Pozz]

I'm questioning why he should be punished for it. The law may say it's wrong, but the judge can provide leniency here and not punish him. The circumstances around it are documented enough to allow for that surely.

Problem is if you do that, you'll open the door for people to always claim they did do it for this exact reason and try to hide behind the "special-Ed case".

[Theodon]

So because the victim in the situation broke the law his abuser(s) are now excused from being punished for any wrongdoing? Hurray America...

He isn't even seen as the victim any more. He's broken a big boy rule and now he's the perpetrator!

Problem is if you do that, you'll open the door for people to always claim they did do it for this exact reason and try to hide behind the "special-Ed case".

I don't see a problem with that if the situation which lead to this involved people breaking the law and others in repsonsibility ignoring the problem before it reached this point. People getting off with illegal wiretaps is already a reality anyway.

[Deleted]

Being America, the Kid probably should've just shot them to death and explained to the courts he feared for his life.

At least he would've walked free and been free of the bullies.

This. If he was rich enough, he could also have used "affluenza" as defense and, after he has been cleared of all charges, proceed to do the cossack dance on the late bullies' graves.

[Pozz]

So because the victim in the situation broke the law his abuser(s) are now excused from being punished for any wrongdoing? Hurray America...

Nope, that item of evidence simply wont be allowed usage in the process(if bullying have to go all the way to court).

The best way to make anything happen, sadly, is to put pressure on the institution that ought to have acted.

- - - Updated - - -

He isn't even seen as the victim any more. He's broken a big boy rule and now he's the perpetrator!

He's still a victim, just not in the case he was taken to court for.

I don't see a problem with that if the situation which lead to this involved people breaking the law and others in repsonsibility ignoring the problem before it reached this point. People getting off with illegal wiretaps is already a reality anyway.

In a system already filled with loop holes, you don't need to add any more.

[Arlon]

We wouldn't need laws in a perfect world, you don't see me advocating that

I obviously used it as an extreme and sorry for that. The fault is with the school, but that doesn't give anyone the right to break the law.

Nothing gives anything rights, certain beliefs are simply agreed to be upheld. Yet, you choose to uphold the rule of law even though it´s clearly not serving the function it was made for.

[Collegeguy]

So because the victim in the situation broke the law his abuser(s) are now excused from any wrongdoing? Hurray America...

The article is sensationalist, so I doubt it has all the facts. They were likely disciplined in some undisclosed fashion, and in response the other party was disciplined with the law.

[Sathington]

I pray to God, Buddha, Allah, and Bill Nye that this kid gets a gun and murders the fuck out of everyone he ever hated, including the judge, the officers, the school admins, and of course the bullies. Don't forget the bully's family and friends. Throw in some teachers that turned blind eyes to the situation.

I wish I had the balls to do it when I was in school, and hopefully this kid is depraved enough to go through with what he has to have thought about since the incident. The mentally ill need to rise up and put the normals in their place.

[Deleted]

Should have shot the guys he had an issue with would have been way easier.

and he probably wouldnt get convicted for it because second amendment and self defense against unarmed people...you know that daily stuff.

[Pozz]

Nothing gives anything rights, certain beliefs are simply agreed to be upheld. Yet, you choose to uphold the rule of law even though it´s clearly not serving the function it was made for.

And one of those things that in this certain state was agreed upon is to protect the individual's right to chose when he's being recorded, so you don't always have to be 100% aware of what you're saying and who is near you. The rule of law serves its exact function.

[Shynra]

I pray to God, Buddha, Allah, and Bill Nye that this kid gets a gun and murders the fuck out of everyone he ever hated, including the judge, the officers, the school admins, and of course the bullies. Don't forget the bully's family and friends. Throw in some teachers that turned blind eyes to the situation.

I wish I had the balls to do it when I was in school, and hopefully this kid is depraved enough to go through with what he has to have thought about since the incident. The mentally ill need to rise up and put the normals in their place.

Please see a psychiatrist asap.

[Deleted]

And one of those things that in this certain state was agreed upon is to protect the individual's right to chose when he's being recorded, so you don't always have to be 100% aware of what you're saying and who is near you. The rule of law serves its exact function.

yeah, because me bullying a weaker person is fine...but hell dont give him the rights to get evidence of it.