Ethan Chaplin was asked to undergo a physical and psychological evaluation

Apr 8, 2014 14:02 GMT  ·  By

A bizarre incident that happened last week in a New Jersey middle school proves that pupils could face serious consequences for simply holding a pencil in an inappropriate way. A seventh-grade student at Glen Meadow Middle School was suspended after allegedly twirling a pencil like a gun in math class.

According to Yahoo News, Ethan Chaplin from Vernon Township claims he didn’t do anything wrong and denies the interpretation given to his actions. He says he was just sitting in class twisting around a pencil with a pen cap on it when a colleague behind him started yelling, “He's making gun motions, send him to juvie [i.e. juvenile detention].”

Moreover, Ethan also says that the fellow student who made that statement had been bullying him earlier that day and was just attempting to get him in trouble.

Officials at the educational institution obviously didn’t believe his story and thought his gesture was more than just spinning a pencil, as after the incident, the teen was suspended from class and was told he could return to school only after he received a physical and psychological evaluation.

“I'm absolutely livid. I think it's gross misconduct at its finest. They took something so minimal and took it so far over the edge,” the boy’s father Michael Chaplin said.

Mr. Chaplin expressed his discontent online, saying that he felt his son's right to education was basically being denied because of the malicious actions of another student. He also complained about the fact that his son had to undergo a five-hour physical and psychological analysis, which came back clean.

On the other hand, Vernon Schools Superintendent Charles Maranzano explained that according to school policy and the law, he must investigate any kind of incident where someone feels uncomfortable or threatened by another student.

“We never know what's percolating in the minds of children. And when they demonstrate behaviors that raise red flags, we must do our duty,” Maranzano said.

Interestingly enough, the superintendent also said the student was not suspended, but was told he could return as soon as a doctor completed a psychological evaluation to determine he didn’t pose a threat to himself or others.

“I don't want to be the one who failed to act when there were warning signs being demonstrated or displayed,” he added, as reported by Huffington Post.

But even after the results of his evaluation were revealed, Ethan still did not know when he would be allowed to return to school.