School officials expell high school student
A 17-year-old Medical Lake High School student was arrested May 12 after school officials and a Spokane County Sheriff's deputy determined he had been threatening another male student with threats of harm that were racially motivated.
Deputy Brian Lawler said he was called last Thursday morning by vice principal Darlene Starr, who explained that she was “emergency expelling” the suspect for calling another male student a racially-derogative name.
She requested Lawler's assistance in removing the suspect from school property. The deputy responded to assist, also contacting the victim student to get his version of events.
The victim and witnesses said the suspect had repeatedly used racial slurs while speaking with the victim, and had shown him a picture of a hooded Ku Klux Klansman hanging President Barack Obama. The victim told Lawler that he felt threatened by the suspect's actions and was fearful they could be carried out.
Lawler arrested the 17-year-old suspect for malicious harassment, a felony, and booked him into the Spokane County Juvenile Detention Center.
High school administrators sent a letter to parents last Friday, assuring them that the district sees protection of students as a top priority. The letter reads in part, “At Medical Lake High School we act quickly and take any report of harassment, intimidation, or bullying very seriously in order to ensure the safety and well-being of all our students.”
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