From the Courts
February 6, 2009
Twelve-year old girl on $750.00 bail

A Chateaubelair father is wondering why his 12-year-old daughter is being put through the criminal system over a fight that occurred between herself and another student after school several months ago.{{more}}

The father told SEARCHLIGHT that he had already forgotten about the incident which occurred on October 15, 2008, but within recent times the police began coming to his home and telling him that he has to bring his daughter to the police station or she would be arrested. But he didn’t know that the matter was so serious until Thursday, January 29, when his daughter had to be taken out of school and taken to the Magistrate’s Court at Golden Grove.

The worried father said that a few days after the incident with his daughter and the other child, the boy’s mother came to his gate and called out his daughter, but he told her that you don’t operate like that; if there’s an issue involving children she should talk to the parents first. He said the woman went away, so he thought that was the end of the issue.

“I feel disrespected and humiliated… why should they put a child through that? What happen to the child welfare system?” he raged.

The young female student said that she is feeling really sad and that her teacher is upset that the matter was dealt with in that way. She was charged with assaulting another minor, also of Chateaubelair, causing actual bodily harm and was placed on $750 and is required to appear before the Magistrate’s Court at Chateaubelair on April 2nd.

The child said that she and the young boy are already friends again and that she wants to be a police officer when she grows up.