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Facebook Photos Land Eden Prairie Kids in Trouble
slim-t writes "The Star Tribune is reporting that students have been disciplined for photos of them on Facebook. 'Eden Prairie High School administrators have reprimanded more than 100 students and suspended some from sports and other extracurricular activities after obtaining Facebook photos of students partying, several students said Tuesday.' Is the school right to do this? My opinion is that the students should know not to post pictures of yourself breaking the law."
I'd just like to know what all those administrators are doing cruising Facebook pages looking at the students in their school.
Supposedly the pics were delivered on a CD (maybe a DVD) to school administrators. The person who delivered it is either unknown or not being identified. (disclosure/source: My sister-in-law attends EPHS. I'm anonymous for her sake.)
Correction. The school has no obligation to punish students for non-school related activities.
Most schools I know of have codes of conduct which prohibit such behavior, whether in a school function or not. At a minimum that code of conduct typically states something like "you shall obey the law at all times".
So, obligation no, right yes.
From the Minnesota State Legislature:
340A.503 PERSONS UNDER 21; ILLEGAL ACTS.
Subd. 3. Possession. It is unlawful for a person under the age of 21 years to possess any
alcoholic beverage with the intent to consume it at a place other than the household of the person's
parent or guardian. Possession at a place other than the household of the parent or guardian creates
a rebuttable presumption of intent to consume it at a place other than the household of the parent
or guardian. This presumption may be rebutted by a preponderance of the evidence.
Here in the UK you are not allowed to buy alcohol until you are 18 but you are allowed to drink on private property from the age of 5.
I am TheRaven on Soylent News
I'm from Eden Prairie.
"I'd just like to know what all those administrators are doing cruising Facebook pages looking at the students in their school."
Short answer: They weren't.
An anonymous person stopped by the high school and dropped off a CD containing the images saved off numerous Facebook sites.
Links as well, I believe, but am not sure. Of course speculation is that it was some kid who wasn't invited; I rather speculate it was a parent who was sick of the hypocrisy of the rules never being enforced, and dropped it off to confront the administration and FORCE them to act.
And for the Europeans who feel our 'policies on alcohol are bizarre': let's remember - to participate in student athletics in Minnesota, EVERY student must sign a pledge to entirely abstain from alcohol or tobacco as a student athlete, and (as I recall, it was 20 years ago I was in EPHS) even to avoid being PRESENT at such activities. Say what you want about the motivation behind the rule, the simple fact is that every one of them signed such a promise and are now blatantly proved to be breaking it. Busted.
My cynical view is that I would like to know WHEN this CD was dropped off. EP is a perennial powerhouse dominant in the local football league...coincidentally football season *just* ended 6 weeks ago. So no real penalties nor damage to the football team.
-Styopa
but in one case, the party was last school year...before the kid "promised" not to drink, no harm done at all!!! there's no dates on this stuff, so the administrator is probably going to find himself sued if a proper lawyer gets a hold of this.
As far as taking pictures of doing something illegal, who cares, like one girl in the article said, they're just PICTURES..they don't prove the kids were DRINKING and even if they did, unless you are caught COMMITTING the act, the police can do nothing (except maybe stake out your party spot for next time!) if I was an enterprising kid, I'd take a bunch of pictures of my friends with EMPTY cans...and call a lawyer!! again, the administrator is getting into trouble here.
I understand the whole "teaching kids to be ethical" thing and "representing the school", but these are PUBLIC schools, no code of ethics applies to students required by law to go there except the LAW. Perhaps the principal could address the issue with PARENTS (who's job it is to raise kids!!!), but it's completely out of line to punish students for random events that happened sometime in the past... that reeks of corporate-fascism!!!
In the article, it explains that the only kids that got in trouble were the ones on the sports teams that signed the "no drug" agreements.