Juvenile Justice?

This has been a crazy day.  As you know, I had to appear again in front of Judge Kuhn yet again, today, for my son's actions.  He did not go to the Why Try program yesterday, and I received a phone call about that yesterday afternoon.  Well, we found out today, as to why he didn't go...his excuse was that "I FORGOT", his father said the same thing...however, his probation officer is also one of the school's resource officers, and pulled David out of a class today to do a urine test on him....he must give urine, as a condition of his probation ANY time that he is asked to do so...so, they can come to his house, my sister's wedding, my house (if he's visiting here), school, or to wherever he will be doing his community service, and they are surprise tests, and he MUST comply.  Well, guess who didn't come up clean on this urine dip today?  Yep, you guessed it right, MY SON!  Who admitted to smoking pot with his little buddy (notice the sarcasm in my typing yet?), Bubba, at the McSherrystown Rec Park, just the day after our LAST court appearance last Tuesday!   So, including the urine test coming back dirty for THC (the chemicals in Marijuana, AND the fact that he missed the Why Try Program yesterday, those were supposed to have landed him with a pretty, little, black anklet...so that they could know where he was at all times, and is considered to be house arrest.  NOPE!!!  They are going to give the boy just a little more rope, to see how much he'll hang himself, I suppose, and gave him 5 more conditions: 1.) Must take the school bus to and from school EVERY day.  2.) MUST NOT have any contact with Bubba anymore  3.) MUST NOT be at the McSherrystown Rec. Park, 4.) He must have clean urine tests, and 5.) if he feels sick at all on a school day, he MUST go to school, and allow the school nurse to send him home...this way, it's an excused absence.  


Now, here's what else was said by the judge.  There is a program called the "Weekend Program", where the boy MUST be at the probation office on Friday afternoons for the following 10 weeks, they will then transport all of the kids to a place in Boiling Springs, PA, where they will undergo counseling, drug and alcohol education and counseling, as well as group sessions, and the Judge also said that they did some fun stuff with the kids too, to burn off energy.   While he was explaining all of this to me, I'm thinking to myself "Hey Self:  THIS sounds just like what my son needs.  I think THIS is a great idea."  So when the Judge finished his explanation of the program, he asked what my thoughts were on it, and I told him that I thought it sounded great and may just be what my son needs at this time to get him into some kind of discipline.  Judge just said to me:  well, it's not punishment, and I agreed again....there is a VERY big difference between punishment and discipline.  Then the judge looked at me, once he realized that I REALLY liked the idea of this program, and asked me this question: "So, I'm thinking that YOU, Ms. Schod, are hoping that he comes up with another infraction?"  SERIOUSLY?  REALLY, Judge Kuhn, you'd really think that I want to see my son fail?  NO, obviously you haven't been listening to me about my wanting my son to have some discipline, and consequences for his actions, as well as a really good program.  However, your Honor, IF my son chooses to be non-compliant to your Honor's rules, regulations, and probation, then, yes, Sir, I believe that this would be a good program for him.  I was SHOCKED that the judge would say that to me.  At this point, I looked at him and said, Look, all I want is to be able to help you all, help the school, help Children and Youth, and his probation officer, and most importantly, I want to help my son, and if it takes just one more infraction, then can we PLEASE put him the weekend program?  It also seems to me that he's being non-compliant with Why Try, as well as school, and last week, you said that if he missed any more of either, that you'd be putting him on Electronic Monitoring, and essentially house arrest.  You aren't doing that now...Ok, one more chance.  But he has to have some kind of consequences for his behavior. 


Oh, and to make matters just a little bit worse, I have to take my son to the Adams County, PA Jail on Saturday to have him finger printed, mug shot, and processed as a criminal.  What I'd really like to see happen, is for them to allow me to back there with my son while they are fingerprinting him so that David can see me, his mother, crying about this.  Maybe he needs to see that he is REALLY hurting me...I don't care anymore about my kids not seeing me crying, as maybe he needs to be a little scared about it!   


I'm still fighting with the school.  Which means that I'll have to take yet ANOTHER day next week, and drive out to New Oxford, and raise Holy Hell with them.  I don't understand why it is that they just cannot get my name on that computer list...Children and Youth get a fax every day on all of the court adjudicated kids, my ex gets a computer call if David is late or truant, but they can't add another parent onto the computer call list?  REALLY?!?!?!?  Just hand me the computer, and I'll do it...It cannot be THAT difficult!  




On my way home, I called a friend, who lives halfway between Gettysburg, and my house, and he asked if I'd eaten today....Uh....answer to that question was NO...belly was too trembling to eat today.  So, he asked if I'd like to go and have dinner with him, and I said sure.  So, for the most part, my day ended well, but truthfully, I am very disappointed in my son, my heart is breaking over the decisions that he is making, and it was everything in me to not be crying when I got to my friend's place.  I think I'm going to hold it all in until Saturday, when I can let it go at the jail, during my son's processing!  


Until later, my minions!