Kansas 13-year-old girl who pointed finger gun at classmates charged with a felony

[Eugene]

Source: NBC News

Kansas 13-year-old girl who pointed finger gun at classmates charged with a felony

The student in Overland Park, Kansas, was allegedly asked by a classmate if she could kill five people in class, who would they be.

Oct. 11, 2019, 10:53 AM EDT
By Minyvonne Burke

A Kansas middle school girl who formed her fingers into a gun and pointed it at several of her classmates after another student asked her who would she would kill was arrested and charged with a felony.

The incident happened on Sept. 18 at Westridge Middle School in Overland Park, about 13 miles south of Kansas City, after administrators were alerted to a potential threat made by a 13-year-old student, police said in a news release.

According to the Kansas City Star, the girl was having a discussion with a classmate who asked if she could kill five people in the room, who would they be. The girl responded by allegedly making a finger gun and pointing it at four students and then pointing it at herself, the outlet reported.

An Overland Park police spokesperson told NBC News in a statement Friday that an individual who felt threatened used the school's online anti-bullying app to alert administrators, who conducted an investigation and then told the school resource officer.

The resource officer, who is employed by the city's police department, interviewed both students involved who "affirmed the actions which constituted the potential threat," police said.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/kansas-13-year-old-girl-who-pointed-finger-gun-classmates-n1064991

[elleng]

1. Felony: a crime, typically one involving violence,

regarded as more serious than a misdemeanor, and usually punishable by imprisonment for more than one year or by death.

Stupid=having or showing a great lack of intelligence or common sense.

Foolish=lacking good sense or judgment; unwise.

[iwillalwayswonderwhy]

2. Therapy? Maybe

Felony? No.

I get it, but only a little. We are always asked to look if there were signs of trouble before a mass shooting. If I were her parent, I’d be concerned. But I would hope there would be more than just this singular incident before going to this extreme.

[Sherman A1]

3. Precisely

I see no crime. I do see a need for counseling.

[Arkansas Granny]

4. Agree. Counseling is much more appropriate in this situation.

I see no positive outcome from treating this girl like a criminal.

[WePurrsevere]

5. At 13 peer pressure is HUGE...

So...
A classmate asked her a hypothetical question that she felt perhaps pressured to reply to.
Why did the classmate ask? That seems like a question one wouldn't ask unless they've thought about it and/or perhaps been asked the same thing.

Yes, she responded very inappropriately with an imaginary finger gun and pointing it at 4 fellow students.
Why did she chose those 4? Is there some issue there that needs to be addressed? Does she have a history of violence or threatening others?)

After doing this she then used the 'gun' last killed HERSELF.
Was she already suicidal or perhaps knew that she couldn't live with herself afterward?

So many children are doing special in school shooter drills now. They're put into the horrible position of imagining that someone is trying to kill them all and how they might survive. They're also trying to understand/imagine WHY someone would want to kill them.

Arresting and traumatizing children for imaginary things like this shouldn't be the first thing that's done. Getting counselling for those children (and possibly their family) should be.

[lindysalsagal]

8. +100. Young teens don't really "know" what they're doing, they're just all emotion.

Which is why they don't get full civil rights (driving, voting) until later.

[Wednesdays]

6. And yet nothing is done about REAL guns

[lindysalsagal]

7. Why is it that when you hear about ridiculous child police charges it's always southern red states?

Of course Kansas is mid-west, but it might as well be Tennessee in terms of religiosity and politics. It's usually florida, but this time, kansas lost it's mind.