Teach Your Children Well…Or Their Parents Will Go To Hell Jail

Via the AP: 

A man ordered by a judge to make sure his daughter hit the books has found himself in jail because she failed to earn a high school equivalency diploma.

Brian Gegner, of Fairfield, was sentenced last week to 180 days in jail for contributing to the unruliness or delinquency of a minor.

He was ordered months ago to make sure his 18-year-old daughter Brittany Gegner, who has a history of truancy, received her GED—something that hasn't happened yet.

Brittany Gegner, who said Monday that she plans to take a required GED test this month, said her father shouldn't be blamed for her failure because she has been living with her mother.

"It was my wrongdoing, not his," said Brittany Gegner, whose fiance and 18-month-old daughter also live at her mother's home in nearby Hamilton. "He shouldn't have to go to jail for something I did."

Her mother agrees.

"Brittany is almost 19 years old now and I think it's unfair to put her father in jail," said Shana Roach. "She's an adult now, and it's not right to rip an innocent man from his home."

More here.

Not sure what to make of this all, but I still think this is a great country and that mandatory education is wrong.

Comments

[Episiarch]

How, exactly, can he make her pass the exam? Can he use his psychic powers to implant knowledge in her head? Would he sit next to her in class to ensure she's paying attention?

Judges like this should be tarred and feathered. They are tyrants in their own personal fiefdom (their court).

[Abdul]

Will it be a parole violation if his 18 month old grandaughter colors outside the lines in kindegarten?

[?]

She is 18 years old. Stop treating her as an infant. It's her test, she failed it.

Not that I think a father of a 15 or 10 year old should go to jail because of a failed test, but being 18 makes it worse.

[Reinmoose]

Can we put parents in jail for not teaching their children how to eat well? I hate that shit!

/ sarcasm

[Jozef]

Judges like this should be tarred and feathered. They are tyrants in their own personal fiefdom (their court).

Heh... Reminds me of this recent story. To quote: "Another time, she allegedly had her husband sworn in so that she could ask him under oath whether he had completed chores at home."

[Other Matt]

To quote: "Another time, she allegedly had her husband sworn in so that she could ask him under oath whether he had completed chores at home."

I hope to hell that was a joking thing on her behalf.

[armchairpunter]

Absurd, but no more absurd than so many other instances of scapegoating and cost-shiftng in this nation.

Reminds me of this strange dream I recently had in which mortgage companies were being blamed for victimizing folks who took out loans and failed to make their payments. In the end,the shareholders of the mortgage companies and the taxpayers were made to pay.

[Edward]

"Not sure what to make of this all..."

I know what to make of it. It's part of an endless exercise in confirmation bias. You trot out yet another example of some outrageous nonsense to confirm one of your dearly held libertarian positions, and the morons who post here cheer you on. Libertarianism may turn out to be a leading cause of Altzheimers because it reaquires so little brain function.

[Guy Montag]

This smacks of an "attainer of blood" violation, but I am sure the lawyer types will know why it is not, like it stems from a truency violation in a jurisdiction that compells school attendance or some such nonsense.

What's next? Fines for failing to mow the vacant lot next door?

[Other Matt]

Libertarianism may turn out to be a leading cause of Altzheimers because it reaquires so little brain function

Such comments and tone are better reserved for joe.

[P Brooks]

If you conducted "exit interviews" with high school dropouts, I suspect the most frequent answer to the question "why don't you go to school?" would be "because it's a waste of time."

Maybe the head of the Ohio Dept of Education is the one who should be thrown in jail.

[tarran]

Sigh, Edward, sweetie,

He's saying that he's not sure why the judge made such a bizarre order. This doesn't happen every day, so there must be something unusual about the case or the judge to prompt it, and that unusual aspect is missing from the news story.

Honestly, Edward, your penchant for saying really dumb things while accusing other people of stupidity is hurting you. Badly. Don't get me wrong, I love your posts they are almost as funny as those of Eric Dondero and somewhat more funny than those of neil. But basic human decency demands that I alert you to this fact, just as basic human decency would require someone to warn another man that he is on TV with his fly open and his shirt sticking out.

[Episiarch]

I love your posts they are almost as funny as those of Eric Dondero

Shhh, don't tell him--he probably thinks he's jabbing us instead of amusing us.

and somewhat more funny than those of neil

Now wait a second there, chief. "Neil", whoever he is, takes first prize for amusing.

[Edward]

Taran

You use too many words per thought.

[Mo]

Reminds me of this strange dream I recently had in which mortgage companies were being blamed for victimizing folks who took out loans and failed to make their payments.

As someone who used to work for a lender, I say the mortgage companies share the blame for not getting paid back. If you're loaning people money without verifying their earning or net worth and encouraging them to state higher home values to get bigger loans, it's your fault too. If I loan Johnny the Crackhead money, I shouldn't be surprised if he doesn't pay me back.

[tarran]

Now wait a second there, chief. "Neil", whoever he is, takes first prize for amusing.

For a while he was, but recently he started putting out occasional posts that made sense. edward/mk2 has thus passed him in the nonsense race.

[pinko]

Other Matt,

Someone has a man cwush.

It's obvious that you loves you some Joe, but isn't it a bit early?

[Bramblyspam]

So why aren't they going to toss the mom in jail for 180 days now?

How about tossing Brittany in jail? After all, she's the one who didn't get the GED on time, and she's an adult now - right?

Give it a few decades, maybe we'll be jailing everyone who doesn't have a college degree by age 23.

[Jennifer]

We already know that the doctrine of mens rea has been abandoned long ago. The only question now is how far from it we're willing to drift.

[First Little Pig]

Edward,

I assume that your complaint is that on this blog outlier anecdotes are highlighted to confirm for the converted how awful and abusive our government/society/nannies/whomever are and that bothers you. But perhaps you miss the real point: that someone should be highlighting the stories and trying to make them more visible so that cretins like the judge in question have a harder time getting away with it. Reason and its blog are as good a place to start as any.

I submit to you that many issues, such as abusive police actions, are mostly covered by blogs and bloggers and some of those, like Radley Balko, are actually starting to get some traction for their side of the issue. And that is a good thing.

[JW]

He was ordered months ago to make sure his 18-year-old daughter Brittany Gegner, who has a history of truancy, received her GED-something that hasn't happened yet.

Yes, because that GED is going to make such a difference in her marketability.

[Marshall]

Yes, because that GED is going to make such a difference in her marketability

Yes, typically young moms with GEDs and apparently messed up family lives really go far.

/personal snobbery

But this is a little absurd. If this was Austria and he had locked her in the basement and was sexin' her up for teh babies, then I might have a different opinion of her. But if she wasn't even living with him, then what the hell? Even if she WAS living with him and didn't get her GED, so what? She's an adult, she's responsible for herself. Jesus.

/facepalm

[guy in the back row]

Why did this end up in court? We deserved to see the issues worked through on Jerry Springer!

[SugarFree]

[throws chair at guy in the back row and demands to know if he's that baby's daddy]

[MP]

Why did this end up in court?

Probably on prosecution of the truancy charge.

[Episiarch]

NUH-UHH! NUH-UHH! I DO WHAT I WANT! (BLEEP) YOU!

[Marshall]

She's just some reject from the Maury School of WTF?

[Pirate Jo]

I think my tubes just tied themselves.

[Pro Libertate]

Everybody knows that Neil is thoreau. Edward is real, though he wasn't for a while.

I'd be fine with parents being held accountable for their children's performance as minors, provided that we were given back the power that is rightfully ours to rule the homestead with an iron fist! Patria potestas!

[JW]

Everybody knows that Neil is thoreau.

Neil is just thoreau with his glasses on. Which also explains why you never see them in the same place at the same time.

The weird thing is that "Neil" reads almost exactly like an actual Neil that I work with. I always read H&R's Neil in the "other" Neil's voice. It works so well it's spooky.

[Jennifer]

Wait a minute: how can an 18-year-old be charged with truancy in the first place? If she's a legal adult, she's not required to go to school if she doesn't want to.

[Episiarch]

Silly Jennifer, judges can order you to do whatever they want, laws or reason be damned. At least they think they can.

[Joe S.]

I wonder how the justice system works in the Bizarro World. Assuming this isn't the Bizarro World.

[MP]

Wait a minute: how can an 18-year-old be charged with truancy in the first place?

The article makes it sound as though the truancy and poor performance in school date well back to before she was 18. He's potentially be punished for his ineffectiveness a few years back, which has led to her presently still being sans-GED.

Stupid, but unsurprising.

[Mo]

I wonder how the justice system works in the Bizarro World.

In Bizarro World the justice system makes sense and provides justice.

[John]

What exactly is this guy supposed to do? I know one thing he could have done and that is knock the shit out of this little brat every time she skipped school. Of course had he done that the same judge would have sent him to jail for child abuse. If we are going to hold parents responsible for their children's behavior, then we need to let them take action sufficient to control their child's behavior. If we don't like doing that, then I suggest we stop holding parents responsible for the actions of children over which they have no authority to control.

[shecky]

Hey, if the US can go around the world, saving crappy countries from themselves, it can certainly do the same to individuals within it's borders, no?

[T]

Hey, if the US can go around the world, saving crappy countries from themselves, it can certainly do the same to individuals within it's borders, no?

We sure can! Just ask Rachel Hoffman.

[Bob Goodman]

The article didn't even say she'd skipped or failed the GED test once, only that the test was scheduled and hadn't happened yet. Could it be that the judge wasn't cognizant of the calendar of when the GED test is administered when the order was imposed? So that it wasn't even possible to comply with?

[TheOtherOne]

You know, if she's 19 and "an adult now," maybe she should act like an adult and accept some responsibility for what's happened to her father. She's the one who skipped out of school; she's the one who failed to get her GED when the judge ordered it. She's the reason her dad's in jail, and she needs to realize her responsibility for that. Consequences happen, and not always to you.

As for why the judge didn't throw *her* in jail, I suspect her 18-month old daughter had something to do with it.

[Edward]

Holy mother of god are you people stupid. Just keep preaching to the converted and pretend anyone else gives a flying fuck.

I can't deal with this black hole of stupidity any longer. I'm done. I won't be back. Stupid fucking fools.

[Episiarch]

Awesome, thanks Edward

[jimmy smith]

I tried doing the math. Let's see now, the young lady is 18 (but closer towards 19) with an 18 month old baby. From biology I remember a 9 month pregnancy would be involved, subtract that and now the young lady is somewhere around 15 3/4 or so when she got pregnant. Maybe the baby's father ought to be involved on a possible delinquency of a minor or some other charge. I dunno know, guess I'm gettin' too old for this modern life.

[Gahan]

Ignorance is a God-given right, damn it! Abraham Lincoln said so when we wrote the constitution.

[Billy Beck]

"Not sure what to make of this all,..."

That's why your magazine is a goddamned joke now, Gillespie.

[Invisible Finger]

It's quite clear that people don't know what's in their best interests. So all Americans should start out in jail, and never released until they show that they do know how to behave in their best interests.

[J sub D]

Hey, Billy boy. How ya doin'? I visited your website. What a piece of unmitigated crap.

Have a nice day.

[Art-P.O.G.]

A shirtless man who answered the door at her home pointed to a "no trespassing" sign and ordered a reporter off the property.

Edward?

[Billy Beck]

Very well, then, J sub Dummy: you know where to go to get your money back, right?

Drop dead.

[Hypatia]

jimmy smith wrote: I tried doing the math. Let's see now, the young lady is 18 (but closer towards 19) with an 18 month old baby. From biology I remember a 9 month pregnancy would be involved, subtract that and now the young lady is somewhere around 15 3/4 or so when she got pregnant.

well, try doing the math again. 18 - 0.75 = 17.25. 17.25 != 15.75

[Hypatia]

apologies, jimmy smith

i can do math but, evidently, cannot read.

[T]

Hypatia,

Try it this way, it works better.

18 - 0.75 - 1.5 = 15.75

One has to account for the age of the baby in addition to gestation to figure out how old the baby momma was at conception.

[Jennifer]

well, try doing the math again. 18 - 0.75 = 17.25. 17.25 != 15.75

Where does .75 come from? An 18-month baby is 1.5 years old. So: 18 - 1.5 = 16.5, minus .75 (nine months in the womb) equals 15.75.

[Art-P.O.G.]

Am I insane or did jimmy smith, hypatia and Jennifer all come to the same conclusion?

[David]

i can do math but, evidently, cannot read.

Well then, I gues you have 24 hour to provide the local PD with your parents' adress so they can be properly punished.

[David]

As do I, apparently.

[T]

Upon further reflection, I can't be the only former hellion teenager who finds this disturbing. My father certainly had no idea how to get me to take high school seriously, but the idea that they could throw him in jail because I obstinately refused to give a damn is just mind blowing. Good thing the only child I have is a) not really mine and b) about to graduate in spite of all of the adults around.

[Ryan S]

Wow, that's my hometown! I went to FHS. Can't say I blame the girl for ditching. I couldn't wait to get the hell out of Fairfield. Suburban USA at its finest. 😉

I remember being pulled over for having dark window tint. Thinking back, it was probably one of the earliest experiences that steered me towards libertarianism.

Ah, good times.

[Art-P.O.G.]

Incidentally, I'm from that area, too. Reynoldsburg, actually.

[Your Good Buddy Johnny Clarke]

Screw the GED, I want to know why parents don't get arrested for failing to control their kids in restaurants.

Now excuse me while I go shout and wave my cane at some young punks walking past the gardenias in my front yard.

[Fluffy]

I know what to make of it. It's part of an endless exercise in confirmation bias. You trot out yet another example of some outrageous nonsense to confirm one of your dearly held libertarian positions, and the morons who post here cheer you on.

Edward, this comment is stupid.

The incident described in this article either happened, or it didn't happen.

If it happened, it does, IN FACT, confirm a dearly held libertarian position, so it is entirely appropriate and fair to highlight it, and for us libertarians to chortle among ourselves about it, and for us to cheer Gillespie on.

Your complaint is stupid. It's like getting angry because someone posts the results of a physics experiment that confirms a theory.

Confirmation bias does not enter into the picture here. "Confirmation bias" is when one only chooses to consider evidence that supports one's opinion and ignores evidence that contradicts it. But if your opinion is "Judges sometimes render stupid decisions," it is impossible for confirmation bias to come into play. For the purposes of that opinion, it does not matter if this judge usually renders fine decisions, and there is no need for us to look for evidence that contradicts our opinion. Once they render a single solitary stupid one, we get to talk about it. The same applies if the opinion being analyzed is, "Assertions of collective responsibility can have bizarre and unjust results." To confirm that opinion, we only need consider examples like this one. All the examples where nothing bad happens or where the judge uses common sense are irrelevant and can be disregarded.

[Fluffy]

Hey, math-doers:

The article says she's almost 19. She could only be 15.75 if today was her 18th birthday. If she's almost 19, that means she was between 16.50 and 16.75 when her baby was conceived.

[lower case j]

A man ordered by a judge to make sure his daughter hit the books has found himself in jail because she failed to earn a high school equivalency diploma.

Let's put a teacher in jail when a kid fails a test, an engineer in jail when your car breaks, a bus driver in jail when your late for work. There's nothing like caprious punishment to keep people at their best.

[Vanessa]

Wow - I'm late to the party but I gotta say this is one of the more fucked up things I've heard recently. Proof positive that states are responsible for creating crime.