In my last blog I discussed the failure of O. E. Green Middle School officials to step in and do their job when they witnessed acts of unwanted sexual advances by 14-year-old gay student Larry King towards15-year-old heterosexual male student Brandon McInerney.
Whether or not King's actions led to his fatal shooting by fellow classmate McInerney, we'll never know. King's flamboyant homosexual behavior and feminine clothing may have nothing to do with his tragic death. However, we cannot squelch the fact that school officials knew a volatile tension was building in the school between King and other students. In step with the breakdown of values in this country, the O. E. Green school staff did nothing to intervene.
Fingers are pointing at Assistant Vice Principal Joy Epstein for not doing her job of enforcing the California educational code regarding sexual harassment in the case of Larry King. Epstein, a lesbian, was more concerned with gay rights than she was in the safety of O. C. Green Middle School student. With Epstein the gay rights agenda took precedence over the greater value of protecting a student who was crossing the line with his display of sexuality. Epstein did nothing to enforce the school dress code in the case of the gay student though King's teacher's complained about the student's outlandish behavior.
According to Brandon's history teacher, Arthur Saenz, the day before King was shot, Brandon displayed a lot of anger and rage in his conversation with his friends. It might have been due to the fact King had asked Brandon to be his valentine, and McInerney's friends were making fun of him.
While McInerney was raging to his friends on the school grounds, Assistant Principal Epstein surveyed the scene, and according to Saenz, Epstein wagged two fingers at Brandon and said something about "rights." Was she supporting King in his unwanted sexual advances towards McInerney? Would she have done the same thing if a heterosexual girl was being sexually taunted by one of the boys? Furthermore, what does sexual harassment by a gay student have to do with "gay rights"? As you can see, Epstein's favoritism towards King is very explosive as well as another example of our moral breakdown.
Saenz was asked in the Chatsworth courtroom if he thought King was sexually harassing Brandon, why did he fail to report it as required by state law. "I thought Ms. Epstein was handling that. She's an administrator and it is her job to handle that situation, not mine," said Seanz.
Not all fingers should point at O. C. Green Middle School. A dark deep shadow is also cast over the McInerney family and their failure to protect Brandon.
According to the August 4th edition of the Ventura County Star, Brandon's half brother James Bing testified that Brandon was sexually abused as a child by a cousin.
Billy McInerney, Brandon' step-father, now deceased, expressed his belief after the shooting that his son shot King because of the abuse.
Unfortunately, the abuse Brandon McInerney experienced did not stop with his cousin taking sexual advantage of the boy. Bing also detailed instances of physical abuse that Billy McInerney would level on his stepsons, including putting Tabasco sauce in their mouths while they slept and beating them with a bar of soap inside a sock.
When Brandon's half brother was asked by Maeve Fox, Ventura County senor deputy district attorney, why nobody ever called police over the sexual abuse, he responded, "He's still family."
The commitment to protect the family unit was more important than protecting Brandon from a sexually perverse relative. Hence, another example of the breakdown of values in America. but now in the family unit.
Assistant Vice Principal Dawn Epstein and James Bing are guilty of the same failure to protect the innocent in order to support another set of personal priorities - gay rights or family reputation.
On Thursday August 5th Brandon's aunt Megan Csorba, sister of Billy McInerney testified her brother would sit on his son until he couldn't breathe, pull his thumb back until he screamed and punch him in the face.
Brandon's aunt added that the boy's step father would verbally abuse his son, berating him and calling him names. Billy McInerney, according to his sister, was often smoking pot and popping pills. The abuse of his son would grow worse when he was on drugs. Csorba also testified that Kendra, Brandon's mother smoked crystal methamphetamine when she was pregnant with Brandon.
The real kicker came when when Fox asked Csorba if she ever called the authorities after witnessing the abusive craziness at the house. "No," the aunt commented. "I was going through my own abuse, and I was not going to do that to my brother." Another adult who failed to act in a mature, responsible fashion and report abuse that was happening to a minor. She'd rather protect the abuser and ignore the victim.
If you put this all together, it's clear that a group of adults were passing the buck, protecting themselves and making decisions out of total self interest.
Teachers failed to report King's overtly gay dress because they were concerned about their tenure and being politically correct about their views on homosexuality. These teachers had no problems giving special treatment to Larry King because he was gay. The same treatment was not offered to heterosexual students when they broke school dress code rules.
Finally, we witness family members who dropped the ball on reporting both physical and sexual abuse taking place to one of their family members. Instead, they chose to protect the abuser out of a need to protect the reputation of a seriously dysfunctional and amoral family.
Is there something wrong with values in America? If you look hard enough into the details of the McInerney case, you can't help but notice this trial is a microcosm of the loss of values in America.
