January 27, 2008
Cuffed Kids: The Prequel
Imecca Burton, her mother, and civil rights lawyer Norman Siegel held a press conference in front of Police Headquarters yesterday to decry the handcuffing of 10-year-old Imecca, who was handcuffed by police in front of PS 25 where she attends elementary school. Police officers witnessed a fight on her school bus and in the ensuing events Imecca was handcuffed. Witnesses said that Imecca was swearing, kicking, and screaming, which is why the cops cuffed her. They were removed once she composed herself. The 10-year-old said she was afraid that she was going to jail and would never get out. "I never thought I'd see my brothers and sisters again," the New York Post reports. The Post labels Imecca Burton as "disabled" when describing her handcuffing and later elaborates that she has attention deficit disorder and dyslexia. Norman Siegel plans to sue the city on her behalf.
The incident happened just two days before the restraining of five-year-old Dennis Rivera, who had his hands cuffed behind a chair after punching his teacher and slapping an assistant principal in the face (the kindergarten kid weighs 68 pounds). School safety agents eventually had to restrain him until EMS arrived and took Rivera to Elmhurst Hospital for a psychiatric evaluation. His mother plans on suing the school because her son was traumatized by the incident.
State Senator Eric Adams representing Brooklyn offered that perhaps police should be issued Velcro handcuffs for the physical restraint of children.
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ADD and dyslexia are not a disability.
Maybe they ought to issue the officers those "Chinese handcuffs" for the index fingers.
It's an important lesson for unruly kids to learn before they become unruly adults. If you don't control yourself, someone else will restrain you. Handcuffs now or prison later -- take your pick.
They should get an award. Its about time someone does something with these kids gone wild, no matter what the ages. A little good parenting and/or a paddle on their butt would do wonders and these kids wouldn't behave like this and have to be cuffed. Maybe they should bring the parents down and cuff them for bringing up their kids like this and thinking its their entitlement to act violently at ages 5 and 10. These same two kids will be the ones who turn violent in their teenage years since they apparently have gone uncontrolled at home, obvious since their parents suing action shows what kind of parents they have.
Maybe kiddie straightjackets would be more humane. Or kiddie tasers. In any case, and all kidding aside, a kid that out of control should not be in the public school system. They may be "just kids," but when they're out of control, they really can hurt people.
There are real issues with explosive children that are difficult to manage. See: http://www.homeschoolzone.com/add/greene.htm and http://www.oprah.com/tows/pastshows/tows_2000/tows_past_20000218.jhtml. I apologize in advance for referencing Oprah.
ADD and dyslexia don't cause a kid to be out of control like this. I know, I worked with kids like this for quite a few years.
Being a garden variety, out of control, brat, on the other hand...there were a few kids like this, that I sure wish I'd had access to handcuffs for!
Perhaps as some one mentioned earlier a mild taser might work or possibly rubber bullets. Slap them around until they start puking up blood. Once a piece of shit, always a piece of shit. Nip it in the bud.
As someone who has taught in a rough school, I totally get the need to "restrain". There is almost no recourse for dealing with difficult, and often violent, students. Teachers aren't even allowed to remove a child to the back of the room anymore. Truthfully, there must be some problem at home as well (this behavior is never school specific) and if the parent can't handle the child, how is a teacher supposed to do it with 25 other kids in the room as well?
they should have stuck her tongue to a cold flag pole, that would teach her!!!
We'll shoot your eye out, kid.
Maybe they should cuff them and send them to juvi, or maybe even the orphanage. That would be the truest form of eye for an eye. Enjoy!
I wouldn't be surprised if the mom told her daughter to act up so that she would get intentionally handcuffed and then you know what comes next.....CCCCHHHHHAAAAAAA CCCCCHHHHIIIIIIINNNNNNGGGGGGGG $$$$$$$$$$.
This is worth about $10,000-$20,000 to the Mom in a lawsuit (depending on how jewish the lawyer is). Thats at least a few months of welfare payments in advance.