Let’s set aside the First Amendment issues here fore a moment – and they are significant – and just consider whether the punishment is appropriate for the offense in question.

PITTSBURGH - A high school senior who was transferred to an alternative school as punishment for parodying his principal on the Internet is suing the district, arguing it violated his freedom of speech.

Justin Layshock had used his grandmother's computer and the Web site MySpace.com to create a phony profile under the principal's name and photo.
The site asks questions, and Justin filled in answers peppered with vulgarities, fat jokes and, to the question "What did you do on your last birthday?" wrote "Too drunk to remember," according to the lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union.

School officials questioned the teenager about the site on Dec. 21, and he apologized to the principal, the ACLU said.

On Jan. 6, the district suspended Justin for 10 days and transferred him to an alternative program typically reserved for students with behavior or attendance problems, according to the lawsuit. He also was banned from school events.

The lawsuit seeks Justin's immediate reinstatement to his regular school.

Alternative school? For a juvenile attempt at humor that happened off campus and outside of school hours? You must be kidding! The suspension is even an overreaction, but one could argue that it is appropriate if the site caused a major problem at the school or contained threats, but not for insults.

Looks like someone with the district, probably the principal, got his panties in a wad and decided to “make an example” of the student.

Bad move – because the taxpayers of the district will be paying for the bad judgment of the individual who made the decision.

Posted by: Greg at 11:24 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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