Boy suspended over leaf
Boy suspended over leaf, An 11-year-old boy suspended for a leaf in his backpack is still prohibited from attending school even though it tested negative for marijuana. The 364-day suspension in Virginia began last September for alleged marijuana possession, but those charges were dropped in juvenile court when tests came back negative for pot.
KTAR News reports that several tests were run on the leaf that was found in the boy's backpack. Officials determined that no marijuana was discovered. Legal charges against the boy suspended for the leaf have been dropped, but the school isn't backing down.
According to the school district's drug policy, the website reads that it also bans "'imitation controlled substances,' defined as a 'pill, capsule, tablet, or other item which is not a controlled substance.'"
Six months after the boy was suspended at his school over a leaf, he's now attending a new school.
Linda Bays, the child's mother, tells The Roanoke Times that her son used to be really happy and easygoing. Now he's wary of authority figures and battles depression. She says: "He just broke down and said his life was over. He would never be able to get into college; he would never be able to get a job."
Bays and her husband, Bruce, are both schoolteachers. They've filed a lawsuit against Bedford County Schools and the Bedford County Sheriff's Office for upholding their son's suspensions in spite of the substance testing negative three different times. Marijuana possession was upheld by school resource officer, Deputy M.M. Calohan, after test results proved negative.
This case in which a boy has been suspended over a leaf has been filed with the U.S. District Court in February and was referred to mediation with U.S. Magistrate, Robert Ballou, the report states.
KTAR News reports that several tests were run on the leaf that was found in the boy's backpack. Officials determined that no marijuana was discovered. Legal charges against the boy suspended for the leaf have been dropped, but the school isn't backing down.
According to the school district's drug policy, the website reads that it also bans "'imitation controlled substances,' defined as a 'pill, capsule, tablet, or other item which is not a controlled substance.'"
Six months after the boy was suspended at his school over a leaf, he's now attending a new school.
Linda Bays, the child's mother, tells The Roanoke Times that her son used to be really happy and easygoing. Now he's wary of authority figures and battles depression. She says: "He just broke down and said his life was over. He would never be able to get into college; he would never be able to get a job."
Bays and her husband, Bruce, are both schoolteachers. They've filed a lawsuit against Bedford County Schools and the Bedford County Sheriff's Office for upholding their son's suspensions in spite of the substance testing negative three different times. Marijuana possession was upheld by school resource officer, Deputy M.M. Calohan, after test results proved negative.
This case in which a boy has been suspended over a leaf has been filed with the U.S. District Court in February and was referred to mediation with U.S. Magistrate, Robert Ballou, the report states.