Gun photos get 5 expelled
Five Belleville High School students have been expelled after photos appeared on a social networking Web site that pictured them with what appears to be an assault weapon, rifles, revolvers, drugs and piles of cash.
Two other students were given eight- to 10-day suspensions. Accusations against an eighth student were dismissed.
The photos have also prompted an ongoing police investigation, said Lt. Dennis Brooks of the Van Buren Township Public Safety Department.
One of the photos on the Web site MySpace.com shows several students sitting around a table, apparently in a home, with rifles arranged in a triangle on the table. Other photos show students in a limousine holding revolvers. Another photo shows what looks like an assault rifle and another shows piles of $20 bills.
It is unclear whether the guns, the cash and the possible illegal substance shown in the photos are real but under district rules, having real or look-alike weapons or drugs is grounds for discipline, Van Buren Public Schools Superintendent Pete Lazaroff said.
"I assume they were real,'' Lazaroff said.A concerned parent reported the photos on Oct. 23, Lazaroff said.
Lazaroff said the limousine photos, which were taken after the limo picked up the students from the high school's homecoming dance, led to the discipline of the students.
Because the limousine picked up the students from the dance but had not dropped them off, school officials believe that the students had the revolvers that were in the photo, as well as a small plastic bag containing a green leafy substance, at the school dance, Lazaroff said.
The students who were disciplined bragged that they were in a gang called the M.A.D.E. Squad, Lazaroff said. One message posted on the Web site on Oct. 22 speaks of a rumor that M.A.D.E. Squad and another gang called M.M.B. would have a fight the next day.
Van Buren Officer Ryan Bidwell said this morning that the investigation is continuing.
Bidwell said that the photos showing rifles, revolvers and assault weapons were a concern because they can be seen as a threat to rival gangs, even if the teens in the photos did not intend to make a threat.
Bidwell added that while M.A.D.E. Squad is a recognized gang active in the Detroit area, police are unsure if M.M.B. is an actual gang.
Lazaroff said the district is also continuing to investigate and is asking for cooperation from parents and other adults if they see similar photos or other possible gang activity.Lazaroff said the possibility that gang violence could affect the school was one reason the district took action against the students.
The five expelled students were banned from the school district for the remainder of this school year. Because they were disciplined under district rules rather than state law, the students may be able to attend another public school district in the state, Lazaroff said.
One of the photos on the Web site MySpace.com shows several students sitting around a table, apparently in a home, with rifles arranged in a triangle on the table. Other photos show students in a limousine holding revolvers. Another photo shows what looks like an assault rifle and another shows piles of $20 bills.
It is unclear whether the guns, the cash and the possible illegal substance shown in the photos are real but under district rules, having real or look-alike weapons or drugs is grounds for discipline, Van Buren Public Schools Superintendent Pete Lazaroff said.
"I assume they were real,'' Lazaroff said.
A concerned parent reported the photos on Oct. 23, Lazaroff said.
Lazaroff said the limousine photos, which were taken after the limo picked up the students from the high school's homecoming dance, led to the discipline of the students.
Because the limousine picked up the students from the dance but had not dropped them off, school officials believe that the students had the revolvers that were in the photo, as well as a small plastic bag containing a green leafy substance, at the school dance, Lazaroff said.The students who were disciplined bragged that they were in a gang called the M.A.D.E. Squad, Lazaroff said. One message posted on the Web site on Oct. 22 speaks of a rumor that M.A.D.E. Squad and another gang called M.M.B. would have a fight the next day.
Van Buren Officer Ryan Bidwell said this morning that the investigation is continuing.
Bidwell said that the photos showing rifles, revolvers and assault weapons were a concern because they can be seen as a threat to rival gangs, even if the teens in the photos did not intend to make a threat.
Bidwell added that while M.A.D.E. Squad is a recognized gang active in the Detroit area, police are unsure if M.M.B. is an actual gang.
Lazaroff said the district is also continuing to investigate and is asking for cooperation from parents and other adults if they see similar photos or other possible gang activity.
Lazaroff said the possibility that gang violence could affect the school was one reason the district took action against the students.
The five expelled students were banned from the school district for the remainder of this school year. Because they were disciplined under district rules rather than state law, the students may be able to attend another public school district in the state, Lazaroff said.
Credit to Marjorie Kauth-Karjala
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Focused Reflection....
One parent interviewed by Channel 7 in Detroit proudly spoke, "parents should go on all their kids myspace pages and make sure it's safe....so I totally agree, they should be expelled". GIVE ME A BREAK!!! @ 17, I was making websites, I could have made 20 myspace pages and showed my mother whichever one I thought she would think was 'safe', all the while having my balls showing on my main page.
How can you kick a child out of school for pics with some stuff that you don't know anything about. I can put baking soda on a table and buy some air guns and take some pics......now I'm being kicked out of school? Oh yea, really teach me a lesson. These adults we allow to be in charge nowadays are absolutely crazy. Suspend them at the MOST, or just make them remove the photos (even though they will be everywhere very quickly), but taking it this far just shows how scary people really are.
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