Anyway, my getting pounded and my response are at:
http://informedsources.blogspot.com/2005/05/readers-speak-out-on-case-of-suspended.html#comments

Paging Bryan, come in Bryan. You going to just stand by and let Charlotte make up stuff we don’t necessarilly to be true? Don’t bother answering I already know the answer.

Given that Kevin’s mother is deployed and that he was previously talking to her, not letting him talk to her when she called back strikes me as downright petulant. It strikes me as almost goading him into behaving even more irresponsibly. Kevin screwed up in letting it get to him, but I expect better of adults.

Steve,
At 17 ( I know I have one at that age) a young man HAS to be able to control his emotions better, as the young man has said in other interviews that he doesnt control him self well and he has a problem with authority. This young man has had enough problems on the campus to make him suspect on just about everything he does. He has been trouble, You see in the real world there are consquences for your behaviors and actions and unfortunaly THIS TIME he may have been justified in his behavior BUT as the newpaper articles have repeatly reported he has been a big problem. You dont get ANY slack when you repeatly act disruptivly toward school officials.
So the school officials( the adults) did act appropiatley, they have a young man with dicipline problems that at first glance thought he was being his normal temper tantrum self then found out that his mother was on the phone with him and changed his suspension from 10 days to 3. Tell me in your daily job do you have to enforce a set of rules that are not unreasonable to follow only to be yelled at cursed out and (if you were a woman ) possibly physically threaten- by a 17 year old? AND still have to follow an education plan for your real job which is teaching?

I don't know about over-reacting since we only have the teachers word over Kevin's in regards to informing the teacher. I still think trying to take the phone from him was stupid if not for the very least that she is starting to turn the confrontation into a physical one, and that could lead to very unfortunate results.

Charlotte,

Given that Kevin's mother is deployed and that he was previously talking to her, not letting him talk to her when she called back strikes me as downright petulant. It strikes me as almost goading him into behaving even more irresponsibly. Kevin screwed up in letting it get to him, but I expect better of adults.

Student caught on phone when school says they are not supposed to be on phone.
student asked to hang up and turn over phone, he refuses, curses out the teacher has a complete meltdown in the school office, we used to call that having a temper tamtrum, then FINALLY calms down and says it was his Momma in Iraq.

Paging Bryan, come in Bryan. You going to just stand by and let Charlotte make up stuff we don't necessarilly to be true? Don't bother answering I already know the answer.

Does his mothers CO(Commanding Officer) know this?

What?

Folks, what are we teaching our students, its ok to yell and scream and act like a total jerk because the end is justified?
This kid has firgured it out. He can con his way through life blaming all other for his behavior instead of becoming more adult like.
This student now has the teachers right where he wants them, let them TRY and maintain order in the classroom, campus ANYWHERE. Hes going to showm whos boss.

My what a vivid fantasy life you have. Sheesh. Next thing you'll be telling us is that Kevin Francois will take over the world. Sheesh.

Now, remember that, and think of it this way:

A kid, whose mother is deployed, already in the context of a school system where every aspect of your behavior is micro-managed, gets a phone callfrom his mother deployed with the military to Iraq. A teacher interrupts, acts the petty tyrant, and the kid explodes.

Who wouldn't?

Suspension should be reserved for real behavior issues, not a kid using a few cuss words and talking to his mom in Iraq.

Also, given the fact that his mom was in Iraq, and called him, just hanging up and calling back later wasn't exactly an easy thing to accomplish. If my only parent was thousands of miles away in a war zone, I probably wouldn't have hung up the phone either.