VIRGINIA STUDENT CHARGED WITH STEALING ‘FREE’ MILK FROM SCHOOL

Middle school student Ryan Turk admitted he had pulled back from the officer, adding: ‘I told him to get off of me because he’s not my dad.’

Ryan Turk was a student who was enrolled in the free lunch program at Graham Middle School in Triangle, Virginia. Last May he went through the lunch line and forgot to take his milk. After he finished eating, he went back to get his milk. When he left the cafeteria with his milk he was confronted by a school cop who accused him of stealing the milk. Ryan mouthed off at the officer. He was cuffed, hailed off to the juvie pokey, charged with larceny.

I would have handled this differently. I know that some of my cop friends will strongly disagree with me. I would expect a teen ager to mouth off at me and even pull back from me if I put my hands on him in front of his school mates, but at this point I would not have busted him. I would have coerced him into going back into the cafeteria to see if indeed he did not take the milk when he first went through the lunch line. If that’s what happened, end of case! If he stole the 65 cent carton of milk, I would deposit his ass in the principal’s office and let them handle it.

I once busted a mother of four on a burglary warrant out of Corona, California. I found out she had broken into a bakery one night to steal several loaves of bread. The woman was destitute, receiving no financial support from the father(s) and barely making it on the aid she got from the state. When I saw she was telling the truth, I uncuffed her, telling her I would contact the baker and see if he would withdraw the burglary complaint. (To begin with, I wasn’t all that anxious to bust her what with four young kids to dispose of.) The baker not only dropped the charges, but he had me tell the woman she could come in daily and pick up all the day-old bread she could carry for free. And every week, the Corona cops took a whole bunch of groceries to the woman.

What I’m getting at is that sometimes there are circumstances when you just don’t have to arrest someone.

Ryan’s story was just published in the Daily Mail. Here it is:

VIRGINIA TENNAGER ON FREE LUNCH PROGRAM IS HANDCUFFED, ARRESTED AND CHARGED WITH LARCENY FOR TAKING 65 CENT CARTON OF MILK FROM CAFETERIA
Ryan Turk forgot his milk the first time he went through the lunch line, so he went back to get it , but a school resource officer accused the teen of stealing the drink

By Khaleda Rahman

Daily Mail
October 2, 2016

A Virginia middle school student was handcuffed, arrested and charged with larceny for 'stealing' a 65 cent carton of milk from the cafeteria – even though he was on the school’s free lunch program.

Ryan Turk’s mother Shamise said her son had forgotten the milk the first time he went through the lunch line at Graham Middle School in Triangle on May 10 so he went back.

But a school resource officer saw the teenager cutting in line and accused him of stealing the drink.

Police said the youngster was handcuffed for being disorderly, WTVR reports.

The teenager admitted he had pulled back from the officer, adding: ‘I told him to get off of me because he’s not my dad.’

He was then taken to the principal’s office and searched for drugs before being suspended.

His mother said the search was because Ryan was ‘fidgety’ and ‘kept pulling on the strings of his pants.’

But now, he is also facing a juvenile record after being charged with larceny.

He rejected a non-judicial punishment and a Prince William County judge has set a trial date.

His mother said she is angry that the situation has escalated so far.

‘This is ridiculous, this is beyond embarrassing. He’s at home for 65 cents,’ Shamise Turk said.

‘They are charging him with larceny, which I don't have no understanding as to why he is being charged with larceny when he was entitled to that milk from the beginning,’ she added.

Police said the charge stems from the boy trying to hide the milk – which his mother denies.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for the school said Ryan was suspended for theft, being disrespectful and for using his cell phone at school.

In a statement to the local station, the spokesman said: ‘The need for disciplinary action is determined by how a student behaves throughout any given incident.

‘An appeals process is in place to ensure the fairness of any disciplinary action.’