In the wake of Baltimore’s first student slaying on school grounds in almost eight years, schools chief Andres Alonso sent a somber e-mail to teachers, administrators and parents to try to boost their spirits.
“We don’t yet know why a 15-year-old student was stabbed to death outside William H. Lemmel Middle School,” he wrote on Tuesday. “We may never know the exact reasons, but in a sense we already know the cause. This young man was a victim of the youth violence that has long been, and continues to be a horrifying facet of our society.”
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Alonso’s e-mail was written on the same day that seven students were arrested after scuffling with two teachers at a Northwest Baltimore high school.
City schools spokeswoman Edie House-Foster gave the following account of the incident: After a teacher at Forest Park High School said two unarmed students had robbed him on Monday, school police arrested two suspects at the school Tuesday. Shortly after the arrests, an altercation broke out involving the teacher, several students and another teacher. City police were called and five additional students were arrested.
All of the students were transported to the Department of Juvenile Services, she said, adding that no one was seriously injured or taken to a hospital. The school system is determining if the students will be suspended or expelled, she said.
On Monday, Timothy Oxendine, 14, was charged with stabbing to death Markel Williams before 1 p.m. Friday at Lemmel Middle School, also in Northwest Baltimore. Oxendine turned himself in to police Friday evening and is being held without bail.
His attorney, Patrick Todd Williams, said Monday that his client was the victim of bullying and that his mother had notified school officials of the problem. He said school officials had attempted to mediate the conflict.
“He tried to follow normal procedures at the school,” Williams said. “This is a case of extreme bullying. He felt extremely threatened. He feared for his life.”
Alonso sent his five-paragraph letter Tuesday afternoon, writing that society has failed to teach young people respect for life.
“Our challenge — as an educational community, a city and a nation — is to replace these so-called ‘lessons’ of the street with a belief in decency and mutual respect,” he wrote. “Above all, we much teach our children to hope.”
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