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Family: Principal put boy in danger
From left, Randy Mainwaring, Brock, 4, Jill Mainwaring and Sean McNally, 11, sit in the family's home. Sean and his mother are suing Sean's former principal over how the principal handled the aftermath of a would-be schoolyard fight between Sean and several other students. Jewett School's leader is sued after taking the fifth-grader to see police and boys who wanted to hurt him By DANI DODGE A Central Point family is suing the principal of Jewett Elementary School for taking their son from his home to the scene of a crime. On June 6, Principal Dennis Allen took 11-year-old Sean McNally to Scenic Middle School, where police were talking with three other fifth-grade boys who had been waiting to attack Sean with knives. "At no time did anyone call us. No one called the parents," said Randy Mainwaring, Sean's father. "There was a clear-cut issue of safety, and they failed." The family filed two lawsuits against Allen this month. One, alleging false imprisonment and negligence, is on behalf of their son, Sean McNally. The other suit, on behalf of Sean's mother, Jill Mainwaring, claims severe emotional distress. The school district's attorney, Tim Gerking, said the lawsuits are "without merit." He said Allen had permission from Sean's grandfather to take him. The case is slated to go to arbitration. The problems started in June, when Sean McNally got in a beef with his best friend over a girl. The girl, who had been "going out" with the best friend, decided she liked Sean instead. On June 6 as the boys were in a bus on their way to school, the argument escalated. The best friend told Sean to meet him at Scenic Middle School after school to fight it out. During the day, rumors of the of the pending fight flew through the school and eventually to the ears of administrators. Allen notified administrators at Scenic Middle School about the possible fight. Sean, who had been grounded the day before, went home after school. But the three boys showed up at Scenic carrying five knives. They also had bandages and peroxide in case of injury. Police and Allen were called. On his way to Scenic Middle School, Allen picked up Sean from his home, where his grandfather was baby-sitting. "He talked to grandfather, and grandfather gave permission to take the boy to the middle school," Gerking said. "The grandfather was identified in the school district's information as someone they could contact in event of an emergency." Sean's parents were outraged they weren't called. "You can put down your neighbor's phone number as an emergency contact," Jill Mainwaring said. "But that doesn't mean you give up your parental rights." They also said Allen didn't tell Sean's grandfather that police or knives were involved. So while the other boys had their parents there, Sean sat alone. He said he was "bored." "There was no need to take him to the unsafe environment and be presented to these boys that he thought were his friends but who wanted to cut him with a knife," Jill Mainwaring said. Sean's parents say they got an apology from the Central Point police, but not from Allen. The school suspended the knife-bearing boys from school for one week. They were charged with carrying a dangerous weapon, and two or the three have signed "accountability agreements" with the juvenile department, said Bob Grindstaff, the director of Community Justice. The third hasn't yet met with juvenile authorities. Jill and Randy Mainwaring believe if they had been notified immediately by the school when the rumors of a fight started to fly, the situation could have been averted and the kids would still be friends. They also thought the boys shouldn't be allowed to come back to school at the same time because it compromised their son's safety. They put Sean in private school. "He'll never spend another day in public school," Jill Mainwaring said. "I'm disgusted and disappointed and have no faith or trust in their ways at all." Allen and Superintendent Candy Manary declined to comment on the lawsuits. They referred inquiries to Gerking. The attorney said Sean was safe. "The district believes this was a short-lived episode and there are no longer any problems between these boys that would cause any continuing concerns," Gerking said. "All these kids are good kids, and whatever differences they had has been resolved." The lawsuits ask for a total of $50,500 - an amount the parents believe will pay for Sean's private school costs through high school. Reach reporter Dani Dodge at 776-4471, or e-mail ddodge@mailtribune.com |
