Agree with the judge or the teachers?

[Oneeyedvic]

Regarding this story here

Seems to me that (for once) a judge made the correct decision. After being told that the kids get on and play football together, he urged teh PCS to reconsider the charging of a 10 year old kid with racism charges.

The NUT think that the judge is nuts for suggesting this.

There have beeen many posts about how out of touch judges are - is this a case of a judge being sensible and the teachers union being 'out of touch'?

[flip-flop]

Hear hear.

[Lonnie]

Finally, a Judge with some common sense, pity there's not more like him.

[Hammer Head]

The judge is completely correct. To take a 10 year old to court over alleged racial abuse is absurd in the extreme. Especially so since the boys now get on.

The judge stated that in his day they would have recieved a clip around the ear and be sent on their way. Maybe if teachers still had this power, the problem would not have manifested itself in the first place.

Well done Judge Finestein

[Drusilla1S]

It is nice to see a judge show some common sense on this issue. Racism is an important issue and schools do need to work hard to eradicate it, but to inflict a court case on a ten year old seems extreme and the teaching unions involved should have shown a greater understanding of this specific case (The boys are now friends) and less political zealotry.

[Loosehead]

yep good on the judge, bloody CPS must be totally infiltrated with yoghourt knitters, unbelievable!

[JamesEverton]

To me, it seems unbelievable that this situation could have reached court. I'd be interested to know if anybody here supports the prosecution of ten year olds for racially abusing each other.

Presumably this case must have been looked at by teachers, the police and the CPS. I can't understand why all of these people would deem criminal prosecution as appropriate. It's concerning that people in such positions of authority are so lacking in any common sense. Maybe we don't know the whole story (?) but the circumstances would have to be extreme to prosecute any ten year old. The judge clearly thought that it was ludicrous, though.

[smudge]

Common sense at last!

[mimififi]

This is the age old issue of when kids fall out, adults get involved and the kids make up while the adults are still fighting.

Abuse has to be consistent and systematic (according to the child protection definition of abuse) and this doesn't appear to fullfill that description. part of being a child is learning what is and isn't acceptable. The boy appears to have learned this. A shame the adults seem to be more learning challenged.

[littleoldme]

Hammer Head makes a very good point. In the judge's day, such behaviour would be amply dealt with by a clip round the ear. Today, anyone administering such summary justice would find themselves as the next case up before the judge.

I'm not excusing what the little brat said, but has the CPS really got nothing better to do than prosecute 10 year olds for name-calling? As said above, the fact that the boys are now friends just makes the case even more ridiculous.

[brionon]

Are they gonna take a kid to court for calling another 4 eyes ?

[ludwig]

Where the kid went wrong is he used racially abusive language.
If he had simply carried out a prolonged and relentless campaign of physical and mental bullying, the school might simply have asked him politely (but not too firmly for fear of upsetting him) to stop, rather than calling out for a prosecution.

[jump79]

I agree totally with the judge, he sounded like a nice, reasonable man, especially when he said:
"In the old days, the headmaster would have got them both and given them a good clouting. He would have said they behaved like idiots and given them the slipper or whatever he used to get and then they would have gone away to shake hands."

Whatever did happen to the good old days...

[THECORBYLOON]

The Judge said he was called fat as a child does he honestly believethe words used by the child are comparable? The words used by the 10-year old are racist and the abuse was over a six-month period. If the child had used inappropriate behaviour with another schoogirl for example, what would be the reaction then?

[jump79]

Not court, that's for sure.