Special-Ed Student Who Recorded Bullies Accused of Felony Wiretapping

In Pennsylvania, a high school sophomore with developmental disabilities was convicted of a crime after recording classmates threatening to "pull down his pants"
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After being regularly shoved and tripped, and nearly burned with a cigarette lighter, a tormented special-needs student in Pennsylvania decided to take matters into his own hands. He secretly recorded the abuse on his school-issued iPad, and his mother eventually submitted the evidence to the school’s principal. But instead of punishing the teenage tyrants caught on tape, administrators decided to call the police, who threatened the 15-year-old boy with felony wiretapping, but later reduced the charge to disorderly conduct. He was found guilty on March 19.

This isn’t the first time that developmentally disabled kids have covertly recorded bullying on school grounds, but it’s the first case where the victim has been criminally convicted for doing so. At least nine such incidents occurred across the country between 2003 and 2013, often resulting in the firing of school employees, the expulsion of students and legal settlements worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. And while it shouldn’t make much of a difference, previous incidents have mostly involved parents slipping discreet spyware into their children’s pockets, rather than the child taking action.

In 2011, an Ohio couple received $300,000 after they secretly taped teachers verbally abusing their 14-year-old disabled daughter with remarks like “It’s no wonder you don’t have friends,” and in 2012, a New Jersey father posted an audio clip on YouTube of his 10-year-old autistic son getting called “a bastard” by a classroom aide.

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http://www.vocativ.com/culture/society/special-ed-student-recorded-bullies-accused-felony-wiretapping/

Following the lead of the Feds, I see. Punish the whistleblower.