The kid was arrested for doing a "bomb hoax" and it's easy to see why the folks in charge might get the idea that's what he was doing.
Hindsight is 20/20 and yes they likely overreacted given what actually took place, but there are policies and procedures that MUST be followed and in the light of the post Columbine world it's easy to see why the procedures are so brain dead.
So nobody did anything wrong here.... Except perhaps for that 14 year old boy, but it's easy to explain HIS issue as being just naïve..
So we are somehow more intelligent about this now?
Look this idea has been tried, it failed, BADLY. History says it's not a good idea no matter how much better we think we can manage this.
At the very least, you simply cannot guarantee a minimum standard of living unless you can control immigration. If you try, the world will show up on your doorstep and bankrupt you.
So this idea is obviously a BAD one under current conditions and there is no need to debate it further until conditions change.
Awh com on... IMHO He KNEW what this looked like, he's a 14 year old nerdy boy, I was one of those once and my son is nerdy and 15.
We are only getting ONE SIDE of this story, from the boy and his parents. The school and the police are not saying much because they CAN'T by their policies. The school doesn't discuss discipline in public for a reason and the police don't discuss issues with minors for a similar reason.
Somehow I just don't think the one side we are getting is everything, that the authorities really did have reason to suspect this kid was building more than just a science experiment. The fact that he plugged this device in and it went off DURING CLASS seems to be on purpose to me. He did it to get attention paid to himself and the device. In typical 14 year old, "don't plan a head and consider the consequences" fashion he succeeded in is goal, just a bit too well..
Again.... I'm not saying anybody believed it WAS a bomb, but that it looked for all the world like a bomb trigger (and as I understand the kid's explanation) could have been used as one. Sorry if that draws some unwanted attention when it shows up in the hands of a somewhat eccentric and nerdy 14 year old boy but we live in a post Columbine world now. Authorities MUST act in these cases to make sure the kid isn't doing what it kind of looks like.
Also understand that we are getting only ONE side of this story. School policy forbids authorities from discussing this in the press so they are keeping silent. IMHO there was a bit more than a suspicious looking device involved here and that the kid plugged in his little device and it went off during class tells me that he INTENDED for this to draw attention to the thing. Well, he's done that...
I know what 14 year old nerdy boys do, I was one once a long time ago and I have a nerdy 15 year old boy now. Not to mention I do volunteer work as an assistant scout master in a troop that has a couple dozen boys around that age. My experience says the kid was acting stupid and looking for attention with his little "device" which is why he hid it in a briefcase and had it mounted like he did.... But hey, on this I'm just making a guess based on experience...
Never claimed this device looked like a bomb, but it does look like a bomb trigger. It is obviously home made and resembles something you'd see in a Hollywood movie representing a bomb trigger. Further, given the kid's description of the device it easily could be used as a bomb trigger..
So somebody thought it might BE a bomb trigger and reacted as if it was.... How's that a problem? In today's day and age, it sure seems reasonable to me to assume it's a bomb trigger until you can establish otherwise, which involves investigating the device's builder. Sorry but it's the age we live in..
Right.... Actually, don't show up with something that LOOKS like a homemade bomb trigger if you are a student at public school... If you do, somebody just might get the wrong impression... If you do, and they do, then don't complain about being inconvenienced when they hold you for questioning.
A 150 in 1 electronic kit, while it COULD trigger a bomb with that relay, doesn't look like a bomb trigger. What this kid made LOOKED like what you'd see in a Hollywood B movie as a bomb trigger... Authorities reacted to what they saw, and I'm not so sure I would want them doing anything differently.
I don't know what world you live in, but in schools today you have to take ANY hint of troubled youth seriously. Here you have an eccentric kid, with a possible bomb trigger device he build himself, that looks all the world like what you'd expect from a Hollywood B movie bomb trigger, who shows up in class, plugs the thing in and then lies about stuff when specifically asked and you don't think the administration at the school isn't going to react? They better react to this kind of thing...
Sorry but it's the world we live in and Irving Texas is in this world.
But if a student brings something to school that raises suspicions that it COULD be intended for harm, you have to take the necessary steps to secure the student and the school from the possible threat. The stupid part here is that this device looks like something straight out of a Hollywood B movie used to trigger a bomb. What do you expect the school and police to do? Pat him on the back and say "Good job there Jonny, way to think outside the box"!
Then AFTER the suspicious device is examined it turns out that it is fully capable of triggering a bomb by all appearances, isn't it prudent to make sure that wasn't the intent? And don't tell me you'd just take the kid's explanation at face value and let him go.... You and I know that's not the world we live in and haven't since Columbine way back in the 70's.
No. but if a student shows up with something that looks like it could set off a bomb that he built himself out of old alarm clock parts with wires soldered onto it and somebody gets the idea that it might be intended to be used that way, you have to take the treat seriously until you are sure the device and the kid are not a threat. Sorry, but that's the world we live in.
I never said they thought it was a bomb.. They though it was a BOMB TRIGGER you ninny... Both building a bomb and building a bomb trigger are illegal you know....
Well, if you show up with a science fair project, I have a feeling you will also have a pile of supporting evidence that shows you are entering the science fair... As I recall there where graphs, charts, and display boards with my science fair project.. Oh and there was the pesky teacher's approval of my project BEFORE I was allowed to bring it into school....
Oh, and mine didn't have old alarm clock parts taken out of the case with wires soldered onto it..... Which for all the world looks like a bomb trigger from a Hollywood B movie...
Well don't put the cart before the horse... The electronic part looks pretty suspicious to me and that's what started this whole thing remember... I'd rather error on the side of caution with the weird looking wired up stuff in the box. What happened from there is the from the suspicions generated from the box and the investigation needed to clear up exactly what it was and why it had been created.
You look in side? Now that was stupid, but what did you see?
You would have seen a jumble of wires soldered to some repurposed circuit cards from an old electric clock.... It's not obviously a bomb but Darn that sure looks like a bomb trigger and small amounts of explosives can be hidden in lots of unlikely looking places...
What are YOU going to do? Hand the kid his box back after school or make sure it really is safe first?
Ah come on.. this was a DISASSEMBLED alarm clock that he plugged in. The box could be opened...There is zero chance this thing was UL certified...
Now if he had it powered by a 9V transistor battery or two, then I'd be willing to accept it wasn't inherently dangerous, but he PLUGGED IT IN, which in my view has zero place in public school science experiments unless the thing being plugged in is a UL listed power supply that puts out less than about 24 volts...
Sorry if that seems harsh to you, but if you show up with a device that LOOKS like a bomb trigger and could be used as a bomb trigger and then plug it in during English class
And if police were ever to detain you for hours because you had a Raspberry Pi in your backpack, you'd shit on the floor in fury and start looking for a lawyer.
Nope. If they truly believe that my little raspberry pi was a danger and choose to detain me until they figure out it isn't, so be it. Last time I went though a TSA checkpoint with one, they didn't even bat an eye, though I expected all the wires and the bread board attached would draw some attention.
But before you go off half cocked on this, remember that this device really DID look dangerous and like what you'd imagine a bomb trigger would be, that raspberry pi obviously is a commercial device. This kid produced a jumble of clock parts and soldered on wires that he plugged into the wall and it made noises. It looked (and likely was) dangerous.
Bomb TRIGGER...... That's what they suspected it was and what it looked like...... Which, if it had been one, would have landed young lad in legal trouble of a criminal kind.
It looks like it COULD be a bomb trigger, albeit in a Hollywood B movie sot of way... And YES, it could have been ready to explode and look benign... Electrolytics can do that when you put AC across them, but hey...
He didn't BUILD A CLOCK, he soldered wires to a clock that he disassembled... It was designed to "trigger" something electrical by the looks of the pictures I've seen. Seems like it would have worked as a bomb trigger to me, given the kid's description of what he was trying to build and looking at the pictures.
Look, it really doesn't matter what it actually was, only what it looked like it could have been. The pictures I've seen visually say "Bomb Trigger" albeit in a Hollywood "B" movie sort of way. Once the authorities have something that appears to be a bomb part, it's "Detain kid who built it", "Ask Questions about suspicious device" and investigate the situation fully until you can figure out exactly what's going on.
How else would you suggest they do this? Just let it slide before you know what the device actually is? Can you imagine the outrage had they just shrugged their shoulders and said nothing and the kid blew up something the next day?
Driving from the back seat and Monday Morning quarterbacking are EASY when hindsight is 20/20...
Technically, anything over 35 V is considered lethal though some would argue that 45V is a better limit... 110 volts can and does kill over 500 a year in the USA. In fact, it's the voltage that kills the most, mainly because it's literally everywhere....
Personally I've been shocked by 230V multiple times and 110 a few times, where it is not immediately lethal, anything that can cause you to loose control of your own movements (which is about 40V) can be lethal. The victim who "cannot let go" is the one that dies from the lower voltages like this. This is why you only touch possible live sources with the back of your hand, so the involuntary jerk when your muscles contract pulls you away from the source.
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The kid was arrested for doing a "bomb hoax" and it's easy to see why the folks in charge might get the idea that's what he was doing.
Hindsight is 20/20 and yes they likely overreacted given what actually took place, but there are policies and procedures that MUST be followed and in the light of the post Columbine world it's easy to see why the procedures are so brain dead.
So nobody did anything wrong here.... Except perhaps for that 14 year old boy, but it's easy to explain HIS issue as being just naïve..
So we are somehow more intelligent about this now?
Look this idea has been tried, it failed, BADLY. History says it's not a good idea no matter how much better we think we can manage this.
At the very least, you simply cannot guarantee a minimum standard of living unless you can control immigration. If you try, the world will show up on your doorstep and bankrupt you.
So this idea is obviously a BAD one under current conditions and there is no need to debate it further until conditions change.
Don't they call it communism?
Didn't it fail to work as well as capitalism? That's what I remember from the 80's...
Awh com on... IMHO He KNEW what this looked like, he's a 14 year old nerdy boy, I was one of those once and my son is nerdy and 15.
We are only getting ONE SIDE of this story, from the boy and his parents. The school and the police are not saying much because they CAN'T by their policies. The school doesn't discuss discipline in public for a reason and the police don't discuss issues with minors for a similar reason.
Somehow I just don't think the one side we are getting is everything, that the authorities really did have reason to suspect this kid was building more than just a science experiment. The fact that he plugged this device in and it went off DURING CLASS seems to be on purpose to me. He did it to get attention paid to himself and the device. In typical 14 year old, "don't plan a head and consider the consequences" fashion he succeeded in is goal, just a bit too well..
Again.... I'm not saying anybody believed it WAS a bomb, but that it looked for all the world like a bomb trigger (and as I understand the kid's explanation) could have been used as one. Sorry if that draws some unwanted attention when it shows up in the hands of a somewhat eccentric and nerdy 14 year old boy but we live in a post Columbine world now. Authorities MUST act in these cases to make sure the kid isn't doing what it kind of looks like.
Also understand that we are getting only ONE side of this story. School policy forbids authorities from discussing this in the press so they are keeping silent. IMHO there was a bit more than a suspicious looking device involved here and that the kid plugged in his little device and it went off during class tells me that he INTENDED for this to draw attention to the thing. Well, he's done that...
I know what 14 year old nerdy boys do, I was one once a long time ago and I have a nerdy 15 year old boy now. Not to mention I do volunteer work as an assistant scout master in a troop that has a couple dozen boys around that age. My experience says the kid was acting stupid and looking for attention with his little "device" which is why he hid it in a briefcase and had it mounted like he did.... But hey, on this I'm just making a guess based on experience...
Never claimed this device looked like a bomb, but it does look like a bomb trigger. It is obviously home made and resembles something you'd see in a Hollywood movie representing a bomb trigger. Further, given the kid's description of the device it easily could be used as a bomb trigger..
So somebody thought it might BE a bomb trigger and reacted as if it was.... How's that a problem? In today's day and age, it sure seems reasonable to me to assume it's a bomb trigger until you can establish otherwise, which involves investigating the device's builder. Sorry but it's the age we live in..
Right.... Actually, don't show up with something that LOOKS like a homemade bomb trigger if you are a student at public school... If you do, somebody just might get the wrong impression... If you do, and they do, then don't complain about being inconvenienced when they hold you for questioning.
Yea, and never cut the red wire to disarm it...
A 150 in 1 electronic kit, while it COULD trigger a bomb with that relay, doesn't look like a bomb trigger. What this kid made LOOKED like what you'd see in a Hollywood B movie as a bomb trigger... Authorities reacted to what they saw, and I'm not so sure I would want them doing anything differently.
Have you heard of Columbine?
I don't know what world you live in, but in schools today you have to take ANY hint of troubled youth seriously. Here you have an eccentric kid, with a possible bomb trigger device he build himself, that looks all the world like what you'd expect from a Hollywood B movie bomb trigger, who shows up in class, plugs the thing in and then lies about stuff when specifically asked and you don't think the administration at the school isn't going to react? They better react to this kind of thing...
Sorry but it's the world we live in and Irving Texas is in this world.
No, I didn't say that.
But if a student brings something to school that raises suspicions that it COULD be intended for harm, you have to take the necessary steps to secure the student and the school from the possible threat. The stupid part here is that this device looks like something straight out of a Hollywood B movie used to trigger a bomb. What do you expect the school and police to do? Pat him on the back and say "Good job there Jonny, way to think outside the box"!
Then AFTER the suspicious device is examined it turns out that it is fully capable of triggering a bomb by all appearances, isn't it prudent to make sure that wasn't the intent? And don't tell me you'd just take the kid's explanation at face value and let him go.... You and I know that's not the world we live in and haven't since Columbine way back in the 70's.
No. but if a student shows up with something that looks like it could set off a bomb that he built himself out of old alarm clock parts with wires soldered onto it and somebody gets the idea that it might be intended to be used that way, you have to take the treat seriously until you are sure the device and the kid are not a threat. Sorry, but that's the world we live in.
I never said they thought it was a bomb.. They though it was a BOMB TRIGGER you ninny... Both building a bomb and building a bomb trigger are illegal you know....
Thank you...
Well, if you show up with a science fair project, I have a feeling you will also have a pile of supporting evidence that shows you are entering the science fair... As I recall there where graphs, charts, and display boards with my science fair project.. Oh and there was the pesky teacher's approval of my project BEFORE I was allowed to bring it into school....
Oh, and mine didn't have old alarm clock parts taken out of the case with wires soldered onto it..... Which for all the world looks like a bomb trigger from a Hollywood B movie...
Well don't put the cart before the horse... The electronic part looks pretty suspicious to me and that's what started this whole thing remember... I'd rather error on the side of caution with the weird looking wired up stuff in the box. What happened from there is the from the suspicions generated from the box and the investigation needed to clear up exactly what it was and why it had been created.
You look in side? Now that was stupid, but what did you see?
You would have seen a jumble of wires soldered to some repurposed circuit cards from an old electric clock.... It's not obviously a bomb but Darn that sure looks like a bomb trigger and small amounts of explosives can be hidden in lots of unlikely looking places...
What are YOU going to do? Hand the kid his box back after school or make sure it really is safe first?
Seriously? NOBODY involved is claiming this kid was abused by the cops either verbally or physically, including the kid and his parents.
He was arrested... They put cuffs on him and walked him out to the car and drove him to the local jail...
Ah come on.. this was a DISASSEMBLED alarm clock that he plugged in. The box could be opened...There is zero chance this thing was UL certified...
Now if he had it powered by a 9V transistor battery or two, then I'd be willing to accept it wasn't inherently dangerous, but he PLUGGED IT IN, which in my view has zero place in public school science experiments unless the thing being plugged in is a UL listed power supply that puts out less than about 24 volts...
And if police were ever to detain you for hours because you had a Raspberry Pi in your backpack, you'd shit on the floor in fury and start looking for a lawyer.
Nope. If they truly believe that my little raspberry pi was a danger and choose to detain me until they figure out it isn't, so be it. Last time I went though a TSA checkpoint with one, they didn't even bat an eye, though I expected all the wires and the bread board attached would draw some attention.
But before you go off half cocked on this, remember that this device really DID look dangerous and like what you'd imagine a bomb trigger would be, that raspberry pi obviously is a commercial device. This kid produced a jumble of clock parts and soldered on wires that he plugged into the wall and it made noises. It looked (and likely was) dangerous.
Bomb TRIGGER...... That's what they suspected it was and what it looked like...... Which, if it had been one, would have landed young lad in legal trouble of a criminal kind.
Have YOU seen the pictures?
It looks like it COULD be a bomb trigger, albeit in a Hollywood B movie sot of way... And YES, it could have been ready to explode and look benign ... Electrolytics can do that when you put AC across them, but hey...
Yes... It IS...
He didn't BUILD A CLOCK, he soldered wires to a clock that he disassembled... It was designed to "trigger" something electrical by the looks of the pictures I've seen. Seems like it would have worked as a bomb trigger to me, given the kid's description of what he was trying to build and looking at the pictures.
Look, it really doesn't matter what it actually was, only what it looked like it could have been. The pictures I've seen visually say "Bomb Trigger" albeit in a Hollywood "B" movie sort of way. Once the authorities have something that appears to be a bomb part, it's "Detain kid who built it", "Ask Questions about suspicious device" and investigate the situation fully until you can figure out exactly what's going on.
How else would you suggest they do this? Just let it slide before you know what the device actually is? Can you imagine the outrage had they just shrugged their shoulders and said nothing and the kid blew up something the next day?
Driving from the back seat and Monday Morning quarterbacking are EASY when hindsight is 20/20...
Technically, anything over 35 V is considered lethal though some would argue that 45V is a better limit... 110 volts can and does kill over 500 a year in the USA. In fact, it's the voltage that kills the most, mainly because it's literally everywhere....
Personally I've been shocked by 230V multiple times and 110 a few times, where it is not immediately lethal, anything that can cause you to loose control of your own movements (which is about 40V) can be lethal. The victim who "cannot let go" is the one that dies from the lower voltages like this. This is why you only touch possible live sources with the back of your hand, so the involuntary jerk when your muscles contract pulls you away from the source.
Cell phones used as bomb triggers are partially disassembled and have wires attached to them....
This kid had a disassembled alarm clock with wires soldered to it..
Need we say more?