A bill that increases the penalties against a minor found guilty of calling in a bomb threat or threatening to commit violence at school receives pushback from Democrats on the House floor, because the proposal could also result in the child’s parents facing fines of up to $5,000 for a first offense. New Orleans Representative Mandie Landry was one of the first lawmakers to object.
“From what I know of some of these situations, I have friends in the school system, these are generally kind of disturbed teens. And it might be something the parent is trying very hard,” Landry said.
Pineville Representative Mike Johnson’s legislation would result in a prison sentence of five to 15 years for terrorizing a school. The court shall also order a child to undergo a mental examination and-or participate in the Back on Track Youth Pilot Program. Johnson’s bill also mandates that the Department of Education provides information to the parents and students about the consequences of terrorizing or menacing a school.
“We want every student to understand what a threat is, what happens when a threat is made, and that these are the consequences that you, personally, or your parents may face if you are to make a threat,” Johnson said.
Lake Charles Representative Wilford Carter’s main problem with the bill is also the thousands of dollars in fines a parent could receive.
“I think it’s a very dangerous precedent to make a parent liable for something a child does, outside the parent having done anything to contribute to or encourage the child to do this,” Carter said.
Johnson says his legislation leaves it up to the discretion of the courts to decide if a parent should be fined. He says the overall goal is to make schools as safe as possible.
“The goal, and the emphasis, is on deterrence. And the only way to make deterrence effective is to make the potential consequences pretty severe. And that’s what this bill does,” Johnson said.
The House approved the bill on a 71-26 vote and heads to the Senate for more discussion.
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