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False Imprisonment: Teacher tapes student to chair in Chicago

By Justin Bathon

Well, it continues to happen. When I teach intentional torts and false imprisonment to my students I can see them sitting there thinking ... who would ever do anything like that to a kid? And I tell them, you know, it happens all the time (unfortunately). Well, a rookie teacher in Chicago taped a special education student to a chair using masking tape -- and was fired, of course.

I can't help but think this is exactly the type of incident that could have been prevented had the rookie teacher had educational law in her pre-service preparation program. Clearly, any teacher should know that it is wrong to tape a kid to a chair. But, teachers that have taken educational law know why it is wrong and know how they are liable. There is less debate in their mind concerning the legality of their actions. I understand that pre-service teachers need lots of classes to get ready to enter the classrooms, but seems like a class that clearly informs teachers of what is legally right and what is legally wrong and why, would be a good idea. There is a reason we have laws against these things, but we are just assuming that teachers will miraculously know this on their own. Why are we doing that? We could make a lot of little things like this go away. Not all of it, but a good deal of it. I am tired of reading about this stuff in the papers.

Crossposted At the Schoolhouse Gate

Full post as published by Edjurist on February 09, 2008 (boomark / email).