WITCHHUNT OF AMERICAN SCHOOL TEACHERS; THE RUSSIAN REACTION
By Stephen Wilson
(Moscow, Russia) -- In very recent years a growing number of American school teachers have been suspended, dismissed and in more extreme cases, received draconian prison sentences for alleged illicit sexual relations with their students. In particular, the 22 year sentence of Jenifer Fichter, 30 year sentence of Brainne Altice, stunned and alarmed Russians who have witnessed alot of injustice throughtout their history. Second City Teachers interviewed some Russian teachers about this and wondered whether we are witnessing an unprecedented witchhunt aimed at intimidating and inspiring fear amongst teachers. Does this mark a new stage in 'teacher-bashing?'
'I'm human and I messed up during a very vulnerable point in my life. During the time I was going through feelings of rejection, no sense of belonging, fear and was bound by emotional chains that just kept getting thicker and tighter. I descended on a very slippery slope and hit rock bottom.
'I ask you to practice mercy and compassion toward me today.
'Please give me a chance to continue building my life with my loved ones', declared Brainne Altice, a teacher charged with having sex with three of her pupils aged between 16 and 17. The Judge in court did not listen. Instead she retorted, 'You knew what you were doing. You were the
adult, you were the teacher, you were the one that could
have stopped the thing from happening'. She then received
an incredibly severe sentence of thirty years leaving one to
have serious doubts about this judge's sanity. For the judge
looked as 'dead' as the accused appeared abundantly alive
and humane. In most usual cases of this kind the teacher is
dismissed from his or her post and deprived of their licence
to teach. Instead of being imprisoned they are forced to
perform some kind of community work. This itself represents
a severe penalty. For the accused teacher's work record is
tarnished with such a stain she might never beable to work
again. One would have thought that being put of a blacklist
is punishment enough.
SCT editro Jim Vail stated, 'The teachers have a very good legal case for taking the judge to court for needlessly cruel sentencing'.
A teacher of Spanish who had a relationship with one of her 18 year old students (the age of consent) just missed receiving a prison sentence though she will never beable to teach again.
This is a case where the student in the state is not a minor.
Those severe punishments as well as scores of other cases in recent years has led many teachers to speculate whether teachers are being singled out by a witchhunt against them.
For instance, two Southern Californian teachers, Melody Lippert, 38, and Michelle Ghirelli 30, have been accused of partying and illicit sex on the beach with students from West Covina High School. Lippert herself was charged
with suspicion of conspiracy and contributing to the deliquency of a minor. A local sheriff stated, 'Regardless of someone's age or not, this is very serious, we take thses allegations seriously when you are talking about a student -teacher relationship'.
He sounds like a Bible-belt preacher than a sober policeman.
Those legal cases we have mentioned are only the tip of the iceberg. Second City Teachers has come across many cases where the evidence against teachers in similar cases was often dubious and highly questionable. Many of the accusations against teachers were made by some students with a petty grudge or gripe. The accusations against the teachers was not based on solid concrete evidence but often rumours, hearsay and an accusation made in a posted letter.
What is the Russian reaction to this? As one might expect, the reactions vary. When I asked older Russians between 60-75 what they thought, some were shocked and one housemaid told me, 'We never behaved like those teachers at that age. We would never act like this.' When I asked young Russians they would mainly answer, ' What is the big fuss? All they did was have sex with some of their grown up pupils. The Americans can become so hysterical. A few Russians even condoned and commended the action of the American teachers saying, 'If they need a job teaching in Russia they are more than welcome. We can find them plenty of students!'
Well those Russian students might have to wait a long time.
However, most Russians unanimously thought that imprisoning the American teachers was cruel and that they should be dismissed from their posts. This is the usual legal procedure in Russia. Some Russians have been galvanised into more than expressing sympathy or condemning the American legal system.
As a past article in Second City Teacher mentioned, supporters such as Denis Shiryaev managed to amass a petition of 41,000 signatures calling for the American Supreme court to review two cases. The petition declares -
'Here is a request to review the case against two school teachers in the U.S.A, Jennifer Fichter and Brianne Alice who were sentenced for a period of 30 years in prison for having sex with three of her students of 16 and 17(Brainne Altice) and 22 years in prison for having sex with students between the ages of 16 and 17, (Jennifer Fichter). A lot of students around the world are supporting them. They think that in this situation there is no justice by the U.S. court. We want to review this case against these ladies. We all that the guys are not so little and they are old enough to butcher, Florida is one of the 12 states in the United States where the age of consent is 18 years (in the remaining 38 states the age of consent is 17 or 16 years.)
That is why the United States court can review the case.
Maybe these ladies made the mistakes of having sex with those guys but we all make mistakes. Our request is dedicated to switch on the light of justice and to modify the sentences.
These ladies find favor in the eyes of millions of people. All of them ask the United States Court to give a smaller prison sentence for Jennifer and Brainne. These sentences are too high and in general in this situation you can give them community service as a punishment. I hope that this petition will have success.
Amongst the comparisons with Anders Breisik, it is despicable and gutless to compare the weaker sex(women) who did not do anything like this low person. Thank you for your support.
Justice will have success.'
It is clear that the judgements in those legal cases has further tarnished the reputation of the United States of America. Now millions of people all over the world no longer cherish illusions that, 'America is the Land of the Free' where 'There is justice for all'! In fact, a deeper examination of what goes on in American courts would shock the Russians even more. The prisons are full of innocent people who were forced to plea guilty simply because they lacked the resources to employ a lawyer. They call those guilty pleas 'bargain pleaing.'
A Russian English teacher Okasana Chebotareva told me, 'Such prison sentencing is going to create a horrible atmosphere for teachers to work in. Teachers and students will no longer trust each other and you will be working in a tense amosphere of fear. I would hate to work in a school with this atmosphere'.
Another teacher, Olga, told me, 'That is just over the top. Those teachers should just be fired and not imprisoned. Stephen, you better watch out that you yourself don't get into trouble'. I told Olga I did not work in American schools or hop into bed with my students.
Lenoid Perlov, a representative of the Union, 'Teacher' stated, 'If I was in charge of those cases I would just dismiss the teachers from their jobs and ban them from working in this particular part of America. I would not put them in prison. But teachers have to understand that they must maintain a distance from their pupils.'
For much of the mass media those cases simply represent lurid, sensational and tantalising entertainment. It is a way of selling more newspapers or increasing the ratings of televsion programs.
For the accused teachers this is not entertainment but their lives which are on the line. One accused teacher, Michelle Preston, a geography teacher, even attempted to commit suicide!
Compassion and care have to be part of any legal system of justice. You have to examine each case on its particular merits rather than by precedent. A rational judge would ask the questions, such as, 'What really happened in this case and why? and 'How can I best assist the accused teachers ? rather than 'Tut Tut Tut ... Throw away the keys approach.
The American teachers unions should take up those cases and fight for a review of those cases. We should build up upon the generous and gallant support of symapthetic Russians. Unless American teachers take bolder steps to defend their rights they will become no better than slaves.
By Stephen Wilson
 |
| Teacher sentenced to 22 years for screwing 17 yr old students. |
(Moscow, Russia) -- In very recent years a growing number of American school teachers have been suspended, dismissed and in more extreme cases, received draconian prison sentences for alleged illicit sexual relations with their students. In particular, the 22 year sentence of Jenifer Fichter, 30 year sentence of Brainne Altice, stunned and alarmed Russians who have witnessed alot of injustice throughtout their history. Second City Teachers interviewed some Russian teachers about this and wondered whether we are witnessing an unprecedented witchhunt aimed at intimidating and inspiring fear amongst teachers. Does this mark a new stage in 'teacher-bashing?'
'I'm human and I messed up during a very vulnerable point in my life. During the time I was going through feelings of rejection, no sense of belonging, fear and was bound by emotional chains that just kept getting thicker and tighter. I descended on a very slippery slope and hit rock bottom.
'I ask you to practice mercy and compassion toward me today.
'Please give me a chance to continue building my life with my loved ones', declared Brainne Altice, a teacher charged with having sex with three of her pupils aged between 16 and 17. The Judge in court did not listen. Instead she retorted, 'You knew what you were doing. You were the
adult, you were the teacher, you were the one that could
have stopped the thing from happening'. She then received
an incredibly severe sentence of thirty years leaving one to
have serious doubts about this judge's sanity. For the judge
looked as 'dead' as the accused appeared abundantly alive
and humane. In most usual cases of this kind the teacher is
dismissed from his or her post and deprived of their licence
to teach. Instead of being imprisoned they are forced to
perform some kind of community work. This itself represents
a severe penalty. For the accused teacher's work record is
tarnished with such a stain she might never beable to work
again. One would have thought that being put of a blacklist
is punishment enough.
SCT editro Jim Vail stated, 'The teachers have a very good legal case for taking the judge to court for needlessly cruel sentencing'.
A teacher of Spanish who had a relationship with one of her 18 year old students (the age of consent) just missed receiving a prison sentence though she will never beable to teach again.
This is a case where the student in the state is not a minor.
Those severe punishments as well as scores of other cases in recent years has led many teachers to speculate whether teachers are being singled out by a witchhunt against them.
For instance, two Southern Californian teachers, Melody Lippert, 38, and Michelle Ghirelli 30, have been accused of partying and illicit sex on the beach with students from West Covina High School. Lippert herself was charged
with suspicion of conspiracy and contributing to the deliquency of a minor. A local sheriff stated, 'Regardless of someone's age or not, this is very serious, we take thses allegations seriously when you are talking about a student -teacher relationship'.
He sounds like a Bible-belt preacher than a sober policeman.
Those legal cases we have mentioned are only the tip of the iceberg. Second City Teachers has come across many cases where the evidence against teachers in similar cases was often dubious and highly questionable. Many of the accusations against teachers were made by some students with a petty grudge or gripe. The accusations against the teachers was not based on solid concrete evidence but often rumours, hearsay and an accusation made in a posted letter.
What is the Russian reaction to this? As one might expect, the reactions vary. When I asked older Russians between 60-75 what they thought, some were shocked and one housemaid told me, 'We never behaved like those teachers at that age. We would never act like this.' When I asked young Russians they would mainly answer, ' What is the big fuss? All they did was have sex with some of their grown up pupils. The Americans can become so hysterical. A few Russians even condoned and commended the action of the American teachers saying, 'If they need a job teaching in Russia they are more than welcome. We can find them plenty of students!'
Well those Russian students might have to wait a long time.
However, most Russians unanimously thought that imprisoning the American teachers was cruel and that they should be dismissed from their posts. This is the usual legal procedure in Russia. Some Russians have been galvanised into more than expressing sympathy or condemning the American legal system.
As a past article in Second City Teacher mentioned, supporters such as Denis Shiryaev managed to amass a petition of 41,000 signatures calling for the American Supreme court to review two cases. The petition declares -
'Here is a request to review the case against two school teachers in the U.S.A, Jennifer Fichter and Brianne Alice who were sentenced for a period of 30 years in prison for having sex with three of her students of 16 and 17(Brainne Altice) and 22 years in prison for having sex with students between the ages of 16 and 17, (Jennifer Fichter). A lot of students around the world are supporting them. They think that in this situation there is no justice by the U.S. court. We want to review this case against these ladies. We all that the guys are not so little and they are old enough to butcher, Florida is one of the 12 states in the United States where the age of consent is 18 years (in the remaining 38 states the age of consent is 17 or 16 years.)
That is why the United States court can review the case.
Maybe these ladies made the mistakes of having sex with those guys but we all make mistakes. Our request is dedicated to switch on the light of justice and to modify the sentences.
These ladies find favor in the eyes of millions of people. All of them ask the United States Court to give a smaller prison sentence for Jennifer and Brainne. These sentences are too high and in general in this situation you can give them community service as a punishment. I hope that this petition will have success.
Amongst the comparisons with Anders Breisik, it is despicable and gutless to compare the weaker sex(women) who did not do anything like this low person. Thank you for your support.
Justice will have success.'
It is clear that the judgements in those legal cases has further tarnished the reputation of the United States of America. Now millions of people all over the world no longer cherish illusions that, 'America is the Land of the Free' where 'There is justice for all'! In fact, a deeper examination of what goes on in American courts would shock the Russians even more. The prisons are full of innocent people who were forced to plea guilty simply because they lacked the resources to employ a lawyer. They call those guilty pleas 'bargain pleaing.'
A Russian English teacher Okasana Chebotareva told me, 'Such prison sentencing is going to create a horrible atmosphere for teachers to work in. Teachers and students will no longer trust each other and you will be working in a tense amosphere of fear. I would hate to work in a school with this atmosphere'.
Another teacher, Olga, told me, 'That is just over the top. Those teachers should just be fired and not imprisoned. Stephen, you better watch out that you yourself don't get into trouble'. I told Olga I did not work in American schools or hop into bed with my students.
Lenoid Perlov, a representative of the Union, 'Teacher' stated, 'If I was in charge of those cases I would just dismiss the teachers from their jobs and ban them from working in this particular part of America. I would not put them in prison. But teachers have to understand that they must maintain a distance from their pupils.'
For much of the mass media those cases simply represent lurid, sensational and tantalising entertainment. It is a way of selling more newspapers or increasing the ratings of televsion programs.
For the accused teachers this is not entertainment but their lives which are on the line. One accused teacher, Michelle Preston, a geography teacher, even attempted to commit suicide!
Compassion and care have to be part of any legal system of justice. You have to examine each case on its particular merits rather than by precedent. A rational judge would ask the questions, such as, 'What really happened in this case and why? and 'How can I best assist the accused teachers ? rather than 'Tut Tut Tut ... Throw away the keys approach.
The American teachers unions should take up those cases and fight for a review of those cases. We should build up upon the generous and gallant support of symapthetic Russians. Unless American teachers take bolder steps to defend their rights they will become no better than slaves.
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