"Zero tolerance" travesty. (Making a Difference).(Brief Article)

Patrick Bryant, 16, is a junior at Palatine High School in Palatine, Illinois. He hopes to become a Marine some day, so developed an interest in guns. His mother, Mary, says, "I don't see anything wrong with that," but some school officials did.

Early last year a parent told a teacher during a parent-teacher night that she had heard that Patrick had a hit list in his locker. The baseless rumor was reported to the principal, who authorized a locker search. There was no "hit list," but according to Northbrook attorney Steven Glink, who specializes in school law and has won a number of court victories in "zero tolerance" violations cases, the locker did contain a doodle of a gun, a photo of two swords, an essay defending the right to keep and bear anns, and another writing assignment mentioning weapons. Also included was a question asking what Patrick feared most about growing old. His answer:

"Getting arthritis in my trigger finger."

Following the locker inspection, police searched Patrick's bedroom and found fireworks, some ammunition, and a BB-gun. There were no other guns in the house, yet the youngster was subsequently sentenced in juvenile court to probation and community service for possessing ammunition without a firearm owner's identification card.

School officials also searched files in the school computer used by Patrick. They found that he had visited a number of progun, pro-Second Amendment websites. A print-out of that supposedly suspicious "evidence" was presented at a hearing to determine if Patrick should be permanently expelled. The most disturbing aspect of the proceeding, according to attorney Gunk, was "the way the school ... just jumped all over this kid with no real evidence. Prior to this time, not one person -- no ...