One of the many issues that Thomas A. Jacobs goes over in his book, "Teens on Trial," is sexual harassment in schools. I found that its a very important topic because this comes up in the media quite often whether its student-teacher relationships or sexual assault by a teacher to a student. More recently, this topic has been talked about a lot due to what has happened at Penn State... But I'm not going to get into that.
In the case of gebser C. Lago Vista Independent School District, a 13-year-old girl Alida Gebser and Frank Waldrop had been working together for tutoring purposes. Over time Mr. Wldrop would make sexual remarks to Alida, in the classroom and at her home. The remarks eventually went further as the relationship progressed. It turned into kissing, fondling, and even sex. Alida did not report any of this behavior to an adult and did not tell anyone at all. This was not found out about until a police officer found them having sex in a parked car. Mr. Waldrop was fired and had his teaching license revoked. Alida and her mother then sued Mr Waldrop and the school district, "claiming negligence and discrimination based on sex. Alida and her mother also held the school district responsible for failing to prevent the teachers misconduct."
In the court decision, the Supreme Court ruled the school district not liable because they had no way of finding out. Alida never reported the incidents so there was no way of anyone knowing. The school found out of this once they were caught by the police officer, where Mr. Waldrop was fired immediately after. The courts made their ruling so that the Gebser's would be able to sue Mr. Waldrop for damages, which is what they did.
If the school was informed before hand of the sexual harassment before and did nothing about it, then Alida and her mother would be able to sue the school district. Alida is also at fault because she didn't tell anyone about these acts and let it continue for quite a long time. Once a school had knowledge of such illegal acts, they can be held responsible if no action is taken.
I think that this is very reasonable for the school district and the students. There's no possible way that a district would know that a teacher would be sexually assaulting students if nothing is reported, and if there is no past record then it would not be able to be seen. Alida should have taken responsibility and told an adult of what was going on so it could have been stopped before it had gotten too far. If a school does not treat complaints or problems then they can be sued for those problems and not recieve immunity from the court.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Invisible Children
After watching the rough cut video and clicking through the organizations website, i was at how much Deerfield High School could help. Deerfield is well known for good academics and athletics, but we also do a phenomenal amount of fundraising. The one page of the website, it shows leaders of teams and individuals who have raised the most money. The second top ranked team was a high school that raised 20,000 dollars. Last year Deerfield High School raised almost 100,000 dollars and im very confident that we will go above and beyond that number. Some things that are pushing the students is that its a organization run by the youth, and its for the youth. Also to think that our school would build enough money to have our own radio tower with the DHS name on it would impact everyone in the north shore of Chicago and that radio tower would stand tall with our name on it for a very long time. If we are able to send one student to Uganda and bring back a picture of the tower with DHS on it, it would be well worth our efforts and time.
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Teens on Trial by: Thomas A. Jacobs, J.D. Post #1
I chose the book, "Teens on Trial," because it has direct relation to what our class is about, and it also has direct relation to me. The book goes over important cases that have gone to the supreme court that involved teenagers, then gives other examples surrounding the issue so that the reader may better understand it. The book covers issues that we have gone over in class such as the death penalty, Privacy in school, drug testing in school and more. The book also covers issues we haven't gone over such as sexual harassment, be hospitalized, and permanent records. I decided to use this book for my semester project because it directly relates to our class, and it would give me more understanding of what we are learning and i would be able to better understand what rights i have in and out of school.
Abortion
Between the NARAL-Prochoice America and National Right to Life websites, I think that i can't really say that one website is better than the other because they are different from each other. Obviously one is for Pro choice and the other Pro life. I think both are very convincing. National Right to Life gives "Quick Facts" on their site that can be very compelling for some. NARAL's website is very well designed and it says that they are pro choice, but they want to help stop more abortions by teaching people about birth control and giving sex education. They also say that, "We will always have to fight to keep abortion safe and legal. This means defeating attacks in Congress and in the states." Both websites impact my thoughts, but in the end i will always go straight to what i believe and that is pro choice.
As a 17 year old boy i strongly believe in a persons own decision. As far as parents go?... its a tough stop. I think it would be good for the parents to know, but its not a necessity. But i do believe that whether they know or not, the woman should be able to make her own decision on whether or not she keeps the child. I believe that because its their body and they have a right to do what they wish with their body.
Its also tough to say where the man stands because he is the other half and it is his child, but i think a child would change a womans life more so than a mans. Also, the father of the child is not always known due to rape or other reasons. Because of this, i think that there shouldn't be a need for concent from the male.
From looking at past bills on abortion, it seems that Illinois would be labeled as prolife. The website though, worked to show that the bills were unfair to woman and their health which is why the bills didn't pass. Its hard for me to argue the laws on abortions because I don't know the technicallities of the birth process but i believe that its not ok if the process of an adortion being legal is cut to the point where its very difficult to get one.
As a 17 year old boy i strongly believe in a persons own decision. As far as parents go?... its a tough stop. I think it would be good for the parents to know, but its not a necessity. But i do believe that whether they know or not, the woman should be able to make her own decision on whether or not she keeps the child. I believe that because its their body and they have a right to do what they wish with their body.
Its also tough to say where the man stands because he is the other half and it is his child, but i think a child would change a womans life more so than a mans. Also, the father of the child is not always known due to rape or other reasons. Because of this, i think that there shouldn't be a need for concent from the male.
From looking at past bills on abortion, it seems that Illinois would be labeled as prolife. The website though, worked to show that the bills were unfair to woman and their health which is why the bills didn't pass. Its hard for me to argue the laws on abortions because I don't know the technicallities of the birth process but i believe that its not ok if the process of an adortion being legal is cut to the point where its very difficult to get one.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Final Death Penalty Post
I believe that the death penalty being abolished in Illinois is extremely just and right. I think that if a group of students at Northwestern University can find 17 men innocent/had a faulty trial, there is something wrong with the system that determines the life or death of a man. Some men were given unfair trials, such as black men who were put up against an all white jury. Also, some men were given attorneys who had shortly later been banned from practicing law. Gov. Ryan gave a story that i thought was very important, that was about Claude Lee. Ryan explained how this man was clearly innocent of his crime of killing a police officer, but he was seriously ill. Lee has a history of mental illness treatment for many years and I don't think that this can be pushed aside. Gov. Ryan said something that made me believe that this was a hard decision for him and he had to toss and turn over every idea:
"But I had to ask myself - could I send another man's son to death under the deeply flawed system of capital punishment we have in Illinois? A troubled young man, with a history of mental illness? Could I rely on the system of justice we have in Illinois not to make another horrible mistake? Could I rely on a fair sentencing?"
From the facts on past cases that included the death penalty, I don't think we can necessarily rely on the justice system. I think a man/woman who has a serious illness shouldn't be put to death, they deserve help that could be provided by the courts.
We have learned through this unit that there can be many different kinds of miss trials. There can be racism, shortened appeals/trails, faulty attorneys given to the defendant, evidence from inmate to get less time, and faulty evidence. Many of these cases were found in the trials that were looked over by Northwestern and they were found in the court cases looked over in our class room. I don't think Gov. Ryan stopped the death penalty because he didn't like it, he did it because the system was so wrong that it had to be stopped and then fixed.
"But for decades, the debate over capital punishment rarely strayed from whether it was right or wrong, a moral argument that was waged mostly by a narrow group of attorneys and abolition supporters that could be easily dismissed. Public opinion polls showed little movement. Death sentences and executions hit record levels. Inmates like the serial killer John Wayne Gacy, whose guilt was never in question, were put to death and caused little controversy. But when a miscarriage of justice was discovered and a death row inmate was set free, the police and prosecutors contended that it was an isolated incident, an anomaly. They got little argument."
The 4th Amendment gives Americans the right to have a FAIR trial in front of a jury. It was found that many men weren't given a fair trial and whether they were guilty or not, it did not matter because we should all have the same treatments, rights, and opportunities. Gov. Ryan didn't end capitol punishment because he was against it, but because it was unjust in the process that the men had to go through to end up on death row. Because of the mistrials, many innocent men were on death row for 10+ years and many opportunities in America were gone because they were waiting to die. Many people wonder if the death penalty is 'cruel and unusual' but i think the bigger question is if its just. It was found that nearly half of 300 men who were on death row shouldn't have been there... That is unjust.
"But I had to ask myself - could I send another man's son to death under the deeply flawed system of capital punishment we have in Illinois? A troubled young man, with a history of mental illness? Could I rely on the system of justice we have in Illinois not to make another horrible mistake? Could I rely on a fair sentencing?"
From the facts on past cases that included the death penalty, I don't think we can necessarily rely on the justice system. I think a man/woman who has a serious illness shouldn't be put to death, they deserve help that could be provided by the courts.
We have learned through this unit that there can be many different kinds of miss trials. There can be racism, shortened appeals/trails, faulty attorneys given to the defendant, evidence from inmate to get less time, and faulty evidence. Many of these cases were found in the trials that were looked over by Northwestern and they were found in the court cases looked over in our class room. I don't think Gov. Ryan stopped the death penalty because he didn't like it, he did it because the system was so wrong that it had to be stopped and then fixed.
"But for decades, the debate over capital punishment rarely strayed from whether it was right or wrong, a moral argument that was waged mostly by a narrow group of attorneys and abolition supporters that could be easily dismissed. Public opinion polls showed little movement. Death sentences and executions hit record levels. Inmates like the serial killer John Wayne Gacy, whose guilt was never in question, were put to death and caused little controversy. But when a miscarriage of justice was discovered and a death row inmate was set free, the police and prosecutors contended that it was an isolated incident, an anomaly. They got little argument."
The 4th Amendment gives Americans the right to have a FAIR trial in front of a jury. It was found that many men weren't given a fair trial and whether they were guilty or not, it did not matter because we should all have the same treatments, rights, and opportunities. Gov. Ryan didn't end capitol punishment because he was against it, but because it was unjust in the process that the men had to go through to end up on death row. Because of the mistrials, many innocent men were on death row for 10+ years and many opportunities in America were gone because they were waiting to die. Many people wonder if the death penalty is 'cruel and unusual' but i think the bigger question is if its just. It was found that nearly half of 300 men who were on death row shouldn't have been there... That is unjust.
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Death Penalty # 2: Law & Politics
The 8th amendment in my eyes comes down to an opinion of whether one thinks the action is, "Cruel or unusual." Some people think that lethal injection is a very smooth and easy death, but some think it is wrong and not right. I believe that lethal injection is not cruel or unusual, but I don't think it is necessarily right. When I think of the death penalty, I tend to think first if the crime suits the punishment. If it suits the crime, then it is not cruel and unusual. If the crime does not suit the punishment, then it is cruel and unusual. I believe that the death penalty should only come into play for some second offence murders and all third offence.
I think that the death penalty is so widely supported because it has been used for hundreds, even thousands of years. The system doesn't fail and for some people it brings justice to what they think is so wrong that someone should be killed. I think the media has a role in this because the media tends to twist and shape the news to make it look worse. Because of this, people who watch the news can be turned against a person because of a report on T.V. I think it is forgotten that the media is bias and that they have their own opinion too. The public is sucked into the medias version on a black hole to where the media shapes the oipinion of their viewers. This could be used in a good or bad way, for example: the media can show positive or negative press on a politician to get their viewers to either like them or dislike them. Or, they can shape a crime scene so that it looks like the police fail to do their job and it puts fear into the publics eyes and it puts pressure on the state government. Or, finally, they can shape the public to think that the death penalty is bad or good. We are all sucked in because when we watch this on T.V, we think its just the news.
I think that the death penalty is so widely supported because it has been used for hundreds, even thousands of years. The system doesn't fail and for some people it brings justice to what they think is so wrong that someone should be killed. I think the media has a role in this because the media tends to twist and shape the news to make it look worse. Because of this, people who watch the news can be turned against a person because of a report on T.V. I think it is forgotten that the media is bias and that they have their own opinion too. The public is sucked into the medias version on a black hole to where the media shapes the oipinion of their viewers. This could be used in a good or bad way, for example: the media can show positive or negative press on a politician to get their viewers to either like them or dislike them. Or, they can shape a crime scene so that it looks like the police fail to do their job and it puts fear into the publics eyes and it puts pressure on the state government. Or, finally, they can shape the public to think that the death penalty is bad or good. We are all sucked in because when we watch this on T.V, we think its just the news.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Death Penalty
I think that the process of a serious crime is unfair to those who have committed past crimes. Police have to rely on pictures of past offenders or criminals which only targets those who obviously had previously committed a crime. But what about the other people?! Im aware that its hard to get the pictures of people who have not committed a crime, but this means that if the police don't know who committed a crime there is a good chance that they could arrest a man who had committed a previous crime and they charge him for a new one based on the fact that he might live near the scene of the crime. The police should only be able to arrest someone with evidence, not probable cause.
Aside from that, i think that the court system designed the method for serious crimes and/or death penatly cases in a specific way so that it would be difficult for an innocent man to be put on death row. I think this because he is put in course with a jury of his peers, where he must be proven guilty by evidence. If in fact he is proven guilty, there is a period where he can appeal evidence or misconduct in the court house which would make all evidence used invalid. This way if the prosecuter has a good lawyer, he should be able to get out of the suit with not guilty if he truly is not guilty.
I believe that lethal injection and possibly a firing squad is the most humane because it puts the person to sleep right away. Electricution, gas, and hangings are slow and painful therefore it would make it "cruel and unusual" I think that the firing squad is ok because if you shoot someone in the right place they can and will die immediately, even though it would be a little scarry. Finally, i think lethal injection is perfectly ok because within seconds it puts the person to sleep without harm.
I quickly noticed from the charts that the states with the most executions on death row, do not have the highest murder rate in the united states. This makes me believe that some states are more in favor of using the death penalty than others which is very true. This makes it hard to decide which cases are worth of moving to decision of death row simply because each states views each case at different extremities. California, Florida, and Texas have the most people and executions on death row, but their murder rate is only in the 5 percentile when others are higher but with significantly less executions.'
The document for the capital murder in Illinois states that basically you can be put on death row if you kill a worker of peace (fireman or police officer), or if you commit multiple crimes which would make you second offence murderer, or if the murder was cruel and unusual to a normal person, or if the murder was commited against a child, someone who could not defend for themselve, or a disabled person. I believe this is fair because it is justifiable and reasonable. These would be easy to dispute in a case and it puts the "one time killers" aside from the repeated offenders.
The charts say that 75% of people executed were white, which i believe is because of hate crimes of white people against other races and ethnicities. The difference between usage of lethal injection and other uses of is significant by almost 1000 uses. I think this is because most states find the other ways cruel and unusual. In the video we just watched, it even said that some states think that lethal injection is cruel and unusual because the death process can take a long time. Here i think is a stat that could end the usage of the death penalty,
"Taxpayers have paid more than $250 million for each of the state’s executions. (L.A. Times, March 6, 2005)"
Aside from that, i think that the court system designed the method for serious crimes and/or death penatly cases in a specific way so that it would be difficult for an innocent man to be put on death row. I think this because he is put in course with a jury of his peers, where he must be proven guilty by evidence. If in fact he is proven guilty, there is a period where he can appeal evidence or misconduct in the court house which would make all evidence used invalid. This way if the prosecuter has a good lawyer, he should be able to get out of the suit with not guilty if he truly is not guilty.
I believe that lethal injection and possibly a firing squad is the most humane because it puts the person to sleep right away. Electricution, gas, and hangings are slow and painful therefore it would make it "cruel and unusual" I think that the firing squad is ok because if you shoot someone in the right place they can and will die immediately, even though it would be a little scarry. Finally, i think lethal injection is perfectly ok because within seconds it puts the person to sleep without harm.
I quickly noticed from the charts that the states with the most executions on death row, do not have the highest murder rate in the united states. This makes me believe that some states are more in favor of using the death penalty than others which is very true. This makes it hard to decide which cases are worth of moving to decision of death row simply because each states views each case at different extremities. California, Florida, and Texas have the most people and executions on death row, but their murder rate is only in the 5 percentile when others are higher but with significantly less executions.'
The document for the capital murder in Illinois states that basically you can be put on death row if you kill a worker of peace (fireman or police officer), or if you commit multiple crimes which would make you second offence murderer, or if the murder was cruel and unusual to a normal person, or if the murder was commited against a child, someone who could not defend for themselve, or a disabled person. I believe this is fair because it is justifiable and reasonable. These would be easy to dispute in a case and it puts the "one time killers" aside from the repeated offenders.
The charts say that 75% of people executed were white, which i believe is because of hate crimes of white people against other races and ethnicities. The difference between usage of lethal injection and other uses of is significant by almost 1000 uses. I think this is because most states find the other ways cruel and unusual. In the video we just watched, it even said that some states think that lethal injection is cruel and unusual because the death process can take a long time. Here i think is a stat that could end the usage of the death penalty,
"Taxpayers have paid more than $250 million for each of the state’s executions. (L.A. Times, March 6, 2005)"
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