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(Mississippi) Judge dismisses assault charges against instructors
http://tinyurl.com/g1gt
Judge dismisses assault charges against instructors by Catherine Cupples Two Probable Cause hearings were held at the courthouse last Wednesday, the first time such hearings have been held in Tunica County. But the fact that this was a first for the county wasn’t noted as much as who the defendants we two separate school employees for the Tunica County School District. Both charges: simple assault. Both final verdicts: Case dismissed. Rosa Fort High School principal and instructor Larry Ball and Tunica County Middle School social studies instructor Michael Lender appeared before Circuit Judge Larry Lewis last Wednesday morning at 10 o’clock, regarding complaints filed by separate sets of parents, claiming Ball and Lender had each knowingly and willfully used excessive force in disciplining students. The incidents were unrelated and involved each man separately, yet both men were represented by the school district's attorney, Joseph “JoJo” Adams of Jackson. In the first case, county prosecuting attorney Chuck Graves (representing the plaintiff in each case) called several witnesses to the stand, each of whom admitted under oath seeing Principal Ball “grab” a young girl’s arm for a “few seconds” only after the girl had interjected herself between Ball and another female who had been involved in a fight. School attorney Adams moved to dismiss. Shortly after in the Lender case, and not once calling the first defense witness to the stand during either, Adams moved for dismissal again, for basically the same reason. And with Judge Lewis’ consecutive brief rulings to dismiss for lack of proof in the cases, Tunica County School District put yet another challenge behind it. “This is a big victory for Tunica County schools and both these men,” shared Adams, following last Wednesday’s hearings. “It’s good to get this behind us and move on to other things.” Ball and Lender were entitled to a Probable Cause Hearing under MS Code, Sec. 99-3-28, which mandates such be held prior to the issuance of an arrest warrant against certified personnel such as, but not limited to, school teachers and officials, along with police and juvenile officers. Under the law, justice court clerks must take the original complaint, then immediately notify the county prosecuting attorney, who in turn, is to immediately notify the Circuit Court Judge to arrange a date for a Probable Cause hearing to be held. If proof is shown and accepted, a judge may then order the issuing of an arrest warrant. Or, as in the Tunica cases, proof to intentionally inflict harm or pose the impression of imminent danger was not shown, and all charges and claims are dismissed. It’s a new law, MS St. Code, Section 99-3-28, according to Judge Lewis in a later interview, only having been in effect since July of last year, but with the nearly half-dozen of such Probable Cause Hearings he has now handled, many verdicts similar to Tunica County’s two display obvious proof why such a law was needed. “All over this state,” explained Lewis, “to have someone arrested, all one has to do is walk-in, sign an affidavit, and have someone arrested. But bear in mind what an arrest actually means. It may not bother some people, but with others, it’s an entirely different matter. Quite frankly, the system was being abused, and our teachers and officers have a tough enough job as it is. Think about it; without this law in place, a teacher could be arrested for simply spanking a child.” Lewis, as in his rulings to dismiss, stated Tunica’s two cases failed to produce any actual facts leading to arrest warrants being issued for any criminal act. “These hearings are very emotional for both sides, families and all, not just the plaintiff and defendant,” shared Lewis. “There’s going to be problems that are hard to deal with any time you are dealing with kids that talk back and act back during disciplinary measures being taken. But with this law in place, it limits unnecessary arrests of our teachers. It’s been serving a good purpose, and keeps a lot of good people from having to be arrested and going to jail.” Lewis stated since the law has taken effect, he has had a few cases which have resulted in the arrest of certified personnel. “Sometimes, these do merit an arrest,” concluded Lewis, “but most of the time, these don’t even progress to the level Tunica’s two did. And while the court is not impressed with certain language that was used (during the incident), the acts simply did not amount to criminal conduct.” Attorney for the district, Adams, stated his client Ball still maintains no improper language was ever used. “Certainly the Tunica County School District frowns on and will look into any incident of profanity and abusive language,” said Adams, “however, with any incident, an investigation must produce proof that such occurred. Ball maintains this particular incident (use of profanity) did not occur, and from what we’ve seen, no absolute proof has been produced.” ---- Catherine Cupples, an Arkansas native from directly across the Mississippi River, moved to Tunica in 1997. Journalism was her major while attending college at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro, AR. ---- |
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(Mississippi) Judge dismisses assault charges against instructors
wrote in message ... http://tinyurl.com/g1gt Judge dismisses assault charges against instructors by Catherine Cupples Two Probable Cause hearings were held at the courthouse last Wednesday, the first time such hearings have been held in Tunica County. But the fact that this was a first for the county wasn't noted as much as who the defendants we two separate school employees for the Tunica County School District. Both charges: simple assault. Both final verdicts: Case dismissed. Rosa Fort High School principal and instructor Larry Ball and Tunica County Middle School social studies instructor Michael Lender appeared before Circuit Judge Larry Lewis last Wednesday morning at 10 o'clock, regarding complaints filed by separate sets of parents, claiming Ball and Lender had each knowingly and willfully used excessive force in disciplining students. The incidents were unrelated and involved each man separately, yet both men were represented by the school district's attorney, Joseph "JoJo" Adams of Jackson. In the first case, county prosecuting attorney Chuck Graves (representing the plaintiff in each case) called several witnesses to the stand, each of whom admitted under oath seeing Principal Ball "grab" a young girl's arm for a "few seconds" only after the girl had interjected herself between Ball and another female who had been involved in a fight. School attorney Adams moved to dismiss. Shortly after in the Lender case, and not once calling the first defense witness to the stand during either, Adams moved for dismissal again, for basically the same reason. And with Judge Lewis' consecutive brief rulings to dismiss for lack of proof in the cases, Tunica County School District put yet another challenge behind it. "This is a big victory for Tunica County schools and both these men," shared Adams, following last Wednesday's hearings. "It's good to get this behind us and move on to other things." Ball and Lender were entitled to a Probable Cause Hearing under MS Code, Sec. 99-3-28, which mandates such be held prior to the issuance of an arrest warrant against certified personnel such as, but not limited to, school teachers and officials, along with police and juvenile officers. Under the law, justice court clerks must take the original complaint, then immediately notify the county prosecuting attorney, who in turn, is to immediately notify the Circuit Court Judge to arrange a date for a Probable Cause hearing to be held. If proof is shown and accepted, a judge may then order the issuing of an arrest warrant. Or, as in the Tunica cases, proof to intentionally inflict harm or pose the impression of imminent danger was not shown, and all charges and claims are dismissed. It's a new law, MS St. Code, Section 99-3-28, according to Judge Lewis in a later interview, only having been in effect since July of last year, but with the nearly half-dozen of such Probable Cause Hearings he has now handled, many verdicts similar to Tunica County's two display obvious proof why such a law was needed. "All over this state," explained Lewis, "to have someone arrested, all one has to do is walk-in, sign an affidavit, and have someone arrested. But bear in mind what an arrest actually means. It may not bother some people, but with others, it's an entirely different matter. Quite frankly, the system was being abused, and our teachers and officers have a tough enough job as it is. Think about it; without this law in place, a teacher could be arrested for simply spanking a child." As opposed to a parent, who can be arrested for simply spanking a child. Lewis, as in his rulings to dismiss, stated Tunica's two cases failed to produce any actual facts leading to arrest warrants being issued for any criminal act. "These hearings are very emotional for both sides, families and all, not just the plaintiff and defendant," shared Lewis. "There's going to be problems that are hard to deal with any time you are dealing with kids that talk back and act back during disciplinary measures being taken. But with this law in place, it limits unnecessary arrests of our teachers. It's been serving a good purpose, and keeps a lot of good people from having to be arrested and going to jail." Why aren't parents likewise treated this way??? Lewis stated since the law has taken effect, he has had a few cases which have resulted in the arrest of certified personnel. "Sometimes, these do merit an arrest," concluded Lewis, "but most of the time, these don't even progress to the level Tunica's two did. And while the court is not impressed with certain language that was used (during the incident), the acts simply did not amount to criminal conduct." Attorney for the district, Adams, stated his client Ball still maintains no improper language was ever used. "Certainly the Tunica County School District frowns on and will look into any incident of profanity and abusive language," said Adams, "however, with any incident, an investigation must produce proof that such occurred. Ball maintains this particular incident (use of profanity) did not occur, and from what we've seen, no absolute proof has been produced." ---- |
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