Police Handcuffed 5yrold Girl

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Apr 22, 2005

Video Shows Police Handcuffing 5-Year-Old Girl
From The Associated Press

ST. PETERSBURG - An attorney says he plans legal action against St. Petersburg police officers who handcuffed an unruly 5-year-old girl after she acted up in her kindergarten class.
A video camera, which was rolling March 14 as part of a classroom self-improvement exercise, captured images of the girl tearing papers off a bulletin board, climbing on a table and punching an assistant principal before police were called to Fairmount Park Elementary.

Then it shows the child appearing to calm down before three officers approach, pin her arms behind her back and put on handcuffs as she screamed, ``No!''

Largo lawyer John Trevena, who provided the tape to the media this week after obtaining it from police, says the officers went too far.

``The image itself will be seared into people's minds when you have three police officers bending a child over a table and forcibly handcuffing her,'' said Trevena, who represents the girl's mother, Inga Akins. ``It's incomprehensible ... There was no need for that.''

Police declined to comment, citing an official complaint by Akins that has sparked an investigation by the supervisor of the four officers who were present. Two are new officers who were being trained that day.

Spokesman Bill Proffitt said the investigation would be complete in about two weeks and the findings would be made public.

The 30-minute tape shows assistant principal Nicole Dibenedetto trying repeatedly to calm down the girl, who ignores her commands and begins punching her. The child's mother was called but wasn't able to immediately come to the school.

After being placed in the back of a police cruiser, police released the girl to her mother after prosecutors informed them they wouldn't bring charges against a 5-year-old.

This story can be found at: http://news.tbo.com/news/MGBJ8BVPU7E.html

What she needs is a good oldfashion spanking, not handcuffs!

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This is totally bizarre. Forget the handcuffing, which is prima facie just plain stupid, but police were called to deal with a 5 year old girl in a school?????
Police????

And Police wouldn't bring charges against the kid? I checked and Florida has no set age of criminal responsibility. Pardon me?

Too bizarre for words - this in a first world country?????

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Quote:

What she needs is a good oldfashion spanking, not handcuffs!

I saw that video. The kid was completely out of control. If the police HAD spanked her, they would have been in big trouble legally. The cops had no idea what the child would do next, and they had to control her. Since they could not deal with her physically, the next best thing was to put her in handcuffs, so she could not cause any more damage.

Yeah, it is peculiar. But it is also strange that a five year old is acting out so forcefully in school. Something is very wrong with that child, and the way that she is being brought up.

I could not answer the poll. Normally, I don't think that little kids should be put in handcuffs. In the case of that little whirlwind though, I think that at the time, it was the best thing to do.

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Where is the video or did you just see it on the news?

Seems to me there are other approaches that could have taken place, but I'd have to see the video to comment.

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Geez! Do a search for "5 year old handcuffed." Amazing!

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Re: Police Handcuffed 5yrold Girl

ConstitutionalGirl wrote:

Apr 22, 2005

Video Shows Police Handcuffing 5-Year-Old Girl
From The Associated Press

ST. PETERSBURG - An attorney says he plans legal action against St. Petersburg police officers who handcuffed an unruly 5-year-old girl after she acted up in her kindergarten class.
A video camera, which was rolling March 14 as part of a classroom self-improvement exercise, captured images of the girl tearing papers off a bulletin board, climbing on a table and punching an assistant principal before police were called to Fairmount Park Elementary.

Then it shows the child appearing to calm down before three officers approach, pin her arms behind her back and put on handcuffs as she screamed, ``No!''

Largo lawyer John Trevena, who provided the tape to the media this week after obtaining it from police, says the officers went too far.

``The image itself will be seared into people's minds when you have three police officers bending a child over a table and forcibly handcuffing her,'' said Trevena, who represents the girl's mother, Inga Akins. ``It's incomprehensible ... There was no need for that.''

Police declined to comment, citing an official complaint by Akins that has sparked an investigation by the supervisor of the four officers who were present. Two are new officers who were being trained that day.

Spokesman Bill Proffitt said the investigation would be complete in about two weeks and the findings would be made public.

The 30-minute tape shows assistant principal Nicole Dibenedetto trying repeatedly to calm down the girl, who ignores her commands and begins punching her. The child's mother was called but wasn't able to immediately come to the school.

After being placed in the back of a police cruiser, police released the girl to her mother after prosecutors informed them they wouldn't bring charges against a 5-year-old.

This story can be found at: http://news.tbo.com/news/MGBJ8BVPU7E.html

What she needs is a good oldfashion spanking, not handcuffs!

Yeah - violence is the best way to teach kids not to be violent....

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Blimey - there are two threads about this!

http://www.able2know.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=50109

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http://www.sptimesphotos.com/video/office.html

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That video made me cry.

Maybe I'm just not so shocked at this child's behavior since I have dealt with similar things. Mo is often angry, has trouble calming himself and will refuse comfort until his anger is spent.

He has his reasons and they are very good reasons.

All I can do is be there to love him when it's over.

I wonder what this child's reasons were.....

I hope that when it's over there is someone there without handcuffs or paddles or lawyers to love her when she's spent.

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It's quite obvious to me that this is the fault of those damn activist judges on the Supreme Court that dis-allowed the death penalty for minors.

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Yeah - violence is the best way to teach kids not to be violent....

dlowan- I think that the teacher was between a rock and a hard place. Although the child apparently had torn up the room, there was little that the teacher could do to restrain her. Apparently, the child was not responding to the teacher's ministrations, and continued messing the place up, and hitting. What else could have been done?

The mother had been called, but she was at work, and could not leave. It looks like there was no father in the picture who could have been alerted to the problem.

Many people appear to be horrified that this little child was put in handcuffs. What would you all have done, if YOU were the teacher, and/or the police?

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If the police have not received training on how to provide restraint to children without cuffing, there is something seriously wrong with the training provided to the police in that state.

This is not brain surgery. I took training in this nearly 30 years ago - and I know the techniques have improved since then.

On the other hand, this is the United States - land of the gloriously litigious. Perhaps tazers, stun guns and hand cuffs are the only way to handle children there.

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ehBeth- You say that you have had training, but you don't mention methods. What would YOU have done, in this situation?

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If I were the teacher:

It's April, and I've had this child as a student for months. Evidently, there have been previous incidents of tantrums.

1. I would know this childs likes and dislikes, what would be appropriate positive reinforcement for this particular child and what wouldn't.

2. I would know what tends to set her off or what she can and can't "handle." What the situation was for each tantrum, and find appropriate way to get the lesson to her in a way that avoids triggering the behavior.

3. I would have been using her specific positive reinforcement all year. I would have kept her close to me, given her responsibility that made her feel closer to me such as having her help pass out papers, wipe the board or whatever else she found rewarding and made her feel special in my eyes. This builds respect and a desire to viewed positively by the teacher, decreasing the likelyhood of future tantrums.

4. I would have insisted on an IEP and appropriate least restrictive setting, both for her sake and the sake of the other students.

5. I would have NOT let them call in the police, since that only served to lessen the authority of the school in this childs eyes, and likely increased her insecurity in the school setting.

6. I would have made her feel safe and found appropriate ways for her to release and taught them to her.

But, that's just me.

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I saw the video. That kid should have been put in a cage. Now the lawsuits begin and some idiotic jury will award the parent many $$$.
I am sure no matter what the teacher or police would or could have done to restrain the child would have ended in controversy and inevitable law suite. And the parent would end walking away happy as a pig in shyt. .

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Nice, au. So, at five I suppose there's no hope of changing this childs life for the better? Just, put her in a cage?

Nice.

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Phoenix32890 wrote:

ehBeth- You say that you have had training, but you don't mention methods. What would YOU have done, in this situation?

You saw my above reference to the litigious nature of Americans, Phoenix. I'm not crazy enough to type out details of any type of therapy here.

<can you tell I spent half of yesterday in a room with 5 lawyers yesterday? American files are verra verra different from Canajun ones>

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I would have killled her. Shot her. She was a clear and present danger and in Florida I'm allowed.

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You saw my above reference to the litigious nature of Americans, Phoenix. I'm not crazy enough to type out details of any type of therapy here.

ehBeth- Unhappily, you are right. Unfortunately, I think that anything that the police and/or the teacher would have done, would have been seen as an opportunity to sue.

I do not believe in corporal punishment, EXCEPT to gain a child's attention in a serious situation. If the teacher had given the girl one swift smack on the butt, it might have defused the entire situation. But they are not allowed to, and therefore the teacher was put in the position of attempting to reason with a child who did not want to be reasoned with.

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Phoenix--

Your question has elictied some profoundly telling answers.

Squinney-- At least you tried, but you are being incredibly unrealistic. Teachers aren't gods. She had other children she was responsible for--you can't say to hell with them and psychoanalyze one child who is currently punching you and poses a danger to herself and other children.

You can have a oretty good knowledge of a student, and have a good rapport with them, and be baffled at weird behavior like this. Trying to pin fault on the teacher in this situation is really stretching.

Even though the school didn't touch her, and likely called the police so they WOULDN'T be sued, her mother (who wouldn't come o her child who needed her) is going to try to profit on her child's hideous behavior.

I don't think anyone should criticise unless they are willing to offer a workable alternative for the school.

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Police Handcuffed 5yrold Girl

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