Dear Editor:
I must take this time to respond to the article from columnist
Denise Apuzzo.
Dear Editor:
I must take this time to respond to the article from columnist Denise Apuzzo. I am so happy that she has such a nice normal family, an children that don’t ever make mistakes or that her daughter and friends are just so perfect. But how dare she question what kind of family these kids come from. I know one of the students and she comes from a very loving family. Her mother is trying very hard to raise her children right and give them good morals and judgment. They attend our church and they are a great family! Unfortunately children don’t always use the best judgment. That is why they are still children and they need adult supervision. This mother is hurting and very much worried about the decisions her daughter made that day. She is also very remorseful. I hope Denise’s children never do anything wrong so that the type of parent or family she has ever has to be called into question!
But there is another side to this story that I would like to address and really concerns me. Why are these kids still in juvenile hall? They had no weapons, or tools to bring about this threat. It was a prank, not a fun one and definitely not something that they should have done, but are they hardened criminals.
I think about the kid in Saratoga a few months ago who was caught redhanded stealing the stuff to make bombs at his school. This kid didn’t even make it to juvenile hall. Were charges even filed against him? The school felt that enough hadn’t been done and took out a restraining order against him. It just goes to show you once again if you are white and have money you can get away with anything. I know one of the kids from Gilroy is a child of color, I don’t even know who the others are but there is a big discrepancy here. These kids should be home by now. What they did was wrong but what these other kid in Saratoga was so much more wrong and he went home with his parents that same day. Was he even questioned without a lawyer or his parents present. When were the parents of the kids in Gilroy notified and were their kids questioned without the benefit of having their parents with them?
The kids need to face the consequences of what they did but let’s make sure the consequences fit what they really did. Parents do need to be responsible for their children but parents can’t hold their children’s hands all day every day. And when children make bad decisions doesn’t mean they come from a bad family or that they have mental health issues.
Sometimes it just means they made a stupid bad decision. What’s happening to all these other kids who are calling in bomb threats and the such at their schools’ are they being kept in juvenile hall? I don’t think so. They are treated much different and once again I have to ask why? Is it racism and social/economics raising its ugly head again. These other kids get a slap on the wrist and you don’t even hear anything else about what is happening with them, but these three kids are being dealt with much more harshly and their families are being questioned about what kind of families do they come from. Some equal justice and consequences that fit the crime needs to happen here.
Dyanne Hofstad, Gilroy
Submitted Friday, may 21 to ed****@****ic.com
