Three years ago a teenager with Asperger's disorder stabbed and killed another teen in the bathroom at a neighboring town high school. The trial is in the paper and on the news everyday. This morning the news debate surrounds the idea that the youth was having a psychotic episode, and is not responsible for his actions.
I feel for his family and for the family of his victim. This is a tragedy. But further I am left with questions on whether this whole situation could have been avoided and what about the next time.
Was the school aware of this child's violent thoughts, fascinations, and behaviors? And if so, why was he unsupervised for even a moment in a bathroom? Seriously, it took a moment for the victim to lose his life.
Was this teens parents forthcoming with the school about his condition? And if this teen had a fascination for weapons and living in a fantasy world why would his parents allow him access to the books that fed this bizarre fantasy?
Are our children protected from this situation? When I send my children to school are they safe? How many other children are in our schools that put our children at risk?
The attacker is a student who was moved from school to school due to "bad behavior." His father said he was bullied and that led to the stabbing of a student who didn't even know him.
Another case of where moving the problem student (priest) around does not solve the problem...
2 comments:
Wow, Patty I feel for you. I understand your concerns and they would be mine as well. If the child had violent tendencies, I also don't understand how he could be left alone in a bathroom with another student.
My nephew is autistic and my sons both have friends that have Asperger's Syndrome. I don't claim to be any type of expert, but I do have some experience with these kids. Asperger's kids can be very focused on one thing - my son's friend is very much into video games and it is sometimes a struggle for his parents and everyone to tear him away. My nephew is only 9 and is not Asperger's but a common autistic trait is a single mindedness (for lack of a better word) about a subject, toy, movie, or thing. Maybe that was this child's problem, but certainly there are other things that are far safer to become fixated on rather than weapons.
Thanks for your insights Tammy.
Post a Comment