One kid shoots this one stands up for the second check it out:
Sixth grader targeted
for pro-gun remarks
'A' student defends 2nd
Amendment,
flagged as violence risk
By Jon E. Dougherty
© 2000 WorldNetDaily.com
School officials at Harbor Lights Middle
School flagged a Holland, Michigan boy as
potentially dangerous because the
12-year-old suggested to a teacher that
one way to prevent school shootings
would be to arm instructors.
Derek Loutzenheiser, a model student
who had such good grades that some
teachers recommended he be tested early
for a popular standardized pre-college
performance test, made his comments in
early March, after being asked by a social
studies teacher what he thought might
make kids safer in school.
Derek had been asked to participate in a
classroom discussion about "school
shootings and safety," said the sixth
grader's father, Tim Loutzenheiser.
"My son simply stated that his opinion
was that he would feel safer if some of the
adults at the school were trained and
allowed to carry firearms," Mr.
Loutzenheiser told WorldNetDaily.
His reply caused him to be "flagged" as a
potential violence risk by teachers and
school administrators, who then contacted
his parents to suggest they meet with the
school's "Hazard and Risk Assessment
Team."
"My wife and I were in disbelief when
they (school officials) telephoned us and
told us that's what they wanted to do,"
Loutzenheiser said. "We asked, 'Do you
have the right kid?'"
In resulting talks with school officials,
Loutzenheiser said he learned that his son
"often spoke favorably about the First and
Second Amendments, but the comment he
made to his Social Studies teacher was the
one that triggered this action."
School officials told the couple that
because of Derek's comments he should
be separated from the other students and
forced to enter the school's "Mentor"
program, where he would be studied by
an adult supervisor who would monitor
Derek's thought processes.
"We were told that this would be in the
best interest of my son, and by doing this
the school would not have to involve
Social Services," Loutzenheiser said. "We
refused."
At that point, the couple contacted an
attorney in nearby Grand Rapids,
Michigan -- one referred to them through
the National Rifle Association's Institute
for Legislative Action. The couple has also
been told by a representative from the
Rutherford Institute, an international legal
and educational civil liberties organization,
that "they would be willing to take on this
issue."
Loutzenheiser said when he and his wife,
Shelly, arrived for the Hazard Team
meeting Mar. 8, "We were outnumbered 7
to 2." He told WorldNetDaily that he
wanted to make a good first impression
with the members, so he shook each
member's hand and introduced himself.
He also told them he had brought along a
tape recorder and would be taping the
proceedings since none of the legal
organizations that said they would
represent him could send a representative
to the meeting on such short notice.
"My wife and I both saw a transformation
from 'smugness' ... to looks of great
concern on some of their faces," he said.
"What was odd about the purpose of this
whole meeting," said Loutzenheiser, "was
that three of the team members were
Derek's teachers, and each of them said
they didn't know there was any 'situation'
with him. That got me to thinking, 'Then
why are we here?'"
However, and though "team" members
denied it, the elder Loutzenheiser said he
believes teachers and school
administrative personnel began to form a
bad impression of his son when, in
January of this year, the sixth grader
refused to sign a "Red Letter" vow of
peace to celebrate Martin Luther King's
birthday.
"The letter, which was written by the
principal," Loutzenheiser said, "asked the
students to take an oath to turn in their
friends for suspicious activity, to vow to
never defend themselves if attacked, and
something to the effect of never to use a
gun or other weapons. Derek simply told
the principal, 'I'm not signing that.'
"I think that's what got him 'noticed' by
some of the administrative staff at least,"
he said.
Of the meeting with "team" members,
Loutzenheiser said, "We got right to the
point and determined that the charges
against my son are without merit. They all
assured me that he is a wonderful student,
gets straight A's, and because he is a little
more advanced academically (at their
suggestion he took the ACT test and
scored very well) they feel he may need an
'adult' to talk to about issues."
Loutzenheiser admitted he didn't know
what team members were implying about
having Derek "talk to an adult about
issues." He added, "We were able to
determine that because my son knows and
understands political and Constitutional
issues so well, that he often speaks in
terms not typical of a 12-year-old, and we
should be assured they have no issues
with this."
The couple believes Derek's Social Studies
teacher was the impetus for the inquiry.
"She felt concern when Derek stated --
when she asked -- that he would feel safer
if some of the adults would be trained and
have access to firearms at school," said
Derek's father. "Because this teacher felt
this [was an] irrational threat, she spoke to
other 'team' members who are also
Derek's teachers."
The couple said they discovered that there
had been a series of similar
misunderstandings involving some of the
things Derek had said in school -- none of
which were threatening or dangerous.
One teacher, said Loutzenheiser, stated
that he heard Derek speak of taking the
hunter's safety course -- which was
offered through the school -- and that
Derek sometimes spoke about how he
liked hunting.
Another teacher said that in her class,
where his son helps write the school
paper, he was tasked with reviewing a
video game. The teacher, he said, felt that
the game might contain violence but didn't
feel "concern" until "after she spoke with
the 'team.'"
One of the vice principals, the couple said,
also felt Derek may need some
"mentoring" because he was "attacked by
three older students last September, in
which Derek fought back and deterred his
attackers on school property,"
Loutzenheiser said.
"They (school officials) wanted to reinforce
how understanding they were, in light of
the fact that the school has a zero tolerance
policy -- no fighting even in self defense --
and how Derek was not punished in any
way for defending himself," Loutzenheiser
said.
However, his wife Shelly had inquired of
teachers and school officials just a day
before the meeting occurred, and "there
were no issues yesterday, but they
seemed to remember some today," he
said.
"We also asked them why, if these
problems were so terrible, no one had
bothered to pick up the phone and call us
before it came to this," said Loutzenheiser.
More disturbing to the couple was the
school's constant alluding to "a list" --
ostensibly the same "list" their son, Derek,
was on, albeit briefly.
"No one really explained what this 'list'
was," Loutzenheiser said, "but from the
sound of it, if you raised anyone's
eyebrows at the school -- for any reason --
you made this 'list.'"
Jerry Klomparens, principal of Harbor
Lights Middle School, told WorldNetDaily
he could not discuss cases or incidents
involving specific children. However, he
spoke briefly about the school's "Mentor
Program" policies, and said they were
only administered after school officials
obtained permission from a student's
parents.
"We believe any educational processes
must first come from parents,"
Klomparens said. "This program is only
designed to help parents" meet special
needs of certain students.
The principal explained that Harbor Lights
uses the mentoring program to "match
students who have particular interests up
with teachers or adults (who are
volunteers) who have similar interests."
When asked about the so-called "list" that
Loutzenheiser mentioned, Klomparens
reiterated that it was school policy "not to
discuss the status of our students." He
also said it was possible that some errors
may have been made in the past in
explaining the "mentor" program to some
parents.
"It's not a real formal program," he said,
adding that sometimes teachers suggest
students whom they believe would benefit
from it. Other than having mutual
interests, Klomparens said neither teacher
nor adult volunteer mentors have received
any special training or qualifications.
But the Loutzenheisers remain
unconvinced.
"Each of these people on the 'team'
probably had no issue with Derek, but by
virtue of assembling together and talking,
they were able to feed upon each others'
concerns, no matter how small, and
allowed them to grow," said Tim
Loutzenheiser. "We're convinced that
Derek will now be placed under a
microscope for observation more than
ever."
Here is where you can reach the administrators of
this indoctrination camp:
http://www.westottawa.k12.mi.us/HL/administrators.htm
------------------
Sandys' Homepage
RKBA forums
We are as one as we all are the same fighting for one cause -Metallica
