The School "Sanctions" The Bullies

Jamey Rodemeyer

Even though the Amherst police department closed their criminal investigation into the bullying case of Jamey Rodemeyer--which ended with Jamey taking his own life--the Williamsville Central School District has suspended some North High School students who had bullied the young man.

Amherst Police Chief John C. Askey revealed that his department's investigation turned up five incidents of alleged bullying at Williamsville North involving Jamey Rodemeyer, but admitted that none of the incidents at North High were brought to the school's attention, or to Jamey's parents' attention, until after Jamey's suicide.

Superintendent Scott Martzloff said, "[The police] shared some information with us, and we followed up. We We made the determination to take disciplinary action." Martzloff did not say how many students had been suspended for their part in bullying Jamey, but it's likely that several of Jamey's classmates were sanctioned. Martzloff did say some of the students faced "a minimum of suspensions"--from a short-term  suspension of up to five days to long-term suspensions subject to a hearing. Expulsion is not an option for students of this age.

The district based its disciplinary actions on the Amherst Police Department's incident findings, which include: 

• A witness said one female classmate who had known Jamey since middle school told Jamey something along the lines of, "Faggot, why don't you just kill yourself?" This student's family hired a lawyer shortly after she was questioned by police.
• In a separate incident, the same student later told Jamey something like, "You're a faggot."
• Another identified student pushed Jamey as he passed him in the hallway and called him a fag.
• Yet another identified student made "an inappropriate comment" to Jamey regarding his sexual orientation, Askey said.

In September, before the conclusion of the police investigation, and the sanctions imposed by the school district, a female student was suspended for telling friends of Jamey's sister, Alyssa, that she was glad Jamey was dead. The same student was referenced in at least two of the bullying incidents involving Jamey that police investigated.

When will people learn? When will parents step up? Who raises a child that could look at another human being and tell them they';re glad someone is dead?

I'm happy these students were sanctioned, though i wish they'd been eligible to be expelled. I wish they had been expelled and sent to another school, and forced to feel different and new and maybe a little afraid. Maybe them they'd feel an iota of what they did to Jamey Rodemeyer every single day of his life until he killed himself. maybe then, they'd understand.

But then, I'm a dreamer.

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