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Photos by Austen Smith
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Attorney representing the four students facing expulsion and/or suspension from Belleville High School, Cliff Woodards II, cross examines Principal Sheila Brown during Anthoy Allen's hearing on Nov. 29. The next open hearing is set for 5 p.m. Tuesday.
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Editor's Note: As of press time Wednesday morning, information regarding Deonte Ruffin's hearing, set for Wednesday night, was not available, and Tory Sykes' hearing is set for 5 p.m. Tuesday. The following focuses on the hearings of Anthony Allen, held on Nov. 29, and Albert McGee held Monday.
We all make mistakes.
But rarely do we make mistakes that were thought to be innocent at the time only to have them catch up to us later and affect our entire future.
This is the very center of the case regarding Anthony Allen, Albert McGee, Tory Sykes and Deonte Ruffin who were banned from Belleville High School for posing in photos that depicted look-alike weapons and narcotics that allegedly was for the purpose of a rap music album cover.
The boys believed, and still believe, that actions taken by Van Buren Schools that led to their expulsion and/or suspension were too severe and violated their due process of law. While school officials have vehemently argued that the students are involved in a gang called MADE, or Money All Day Everyday, and that the photos represent a very real threat to the safety of the district - the students and parents say they were just playing around.
Light has been shed on this information during public disciplinary hearings set forth in an order decreed by Circuit Court Judge Cynthia Stephens, who presided over the lawsuit hearing brought forth by parents of the four boys. A fifth student banned from the school, is not named in the action.
This second set of hearings will determine the fate of the boys in a case that has captured national attention and has quickly become much more than just a disciplinary hearing, which is typically a routine administrative function for the district.
Hearing Officer William Blaha, from Farmington Hills-based Collins and Blaha law firm, said that he will not have these hearings "become a circus."
To which counsel for the students, Cliff Woodards II from the Detroit Law Center, appropriately replied, "It already is."
Anthony Allen
Anthony Allen, a former senior at Belleville High School, held a 3.0 grade point average and was on track to attend college at the end of the year.
Allen now is simply hoping to finish high school after Van Buren school board members reaffirmed their decision to expel Allen for the remainder of the year during the Nov. 29 disciplinary hearing as set forth by Judge Stephens.
Just two days prior to Allen's hearing, Stephens ordered that new disciplinary hearings be held for all of the students involved as she was unable to determine whether the students' due process of law had been violated or whether the punishment was too severe as dictated by the evidence - both claims made in the action filed by the parents of the students.
Counsel for the students, Cliff Woodards II, argued a number of points that eventually led school board members to drop two of the charges Allen was facing. Use or possession of a weapon or look-alike weapon while in transit to or from school or a school-sponsored function and criminal acts charges were both dropped.
In this case, the function was the Oct. 13 homecoming dance in which the students were all pictured in a limousine that picked up some students from the dance. The limousine was rented by one of the other parents.
Another charge, the commitment of criminal acts, also was dropped as school board members determined that the photos do not picture nor lend any proof to Allen having knowingly committed any criminal acts as defined by state or federal law.
There were three of the five charges left in the resolution - gang-like activity, drugs or alcoholic use and possession and intimidation - which led to the eventual decision of expulsion from Belleville High School where Allen has attended for the past four years.
In one of the photos, Allen was pictured holding what appeared to be marijuana. Woodards attempted to argue that school board members had no way of knowing whether it was real or "just a spice," of some sort as Allen had stated to administrators that the drugs were fake.
School board members rejected that argument as the student handbook covers look-alike drugs or weapons in the same fashion that it covers real weapons or drugs.
Beyond what evidence had been presented, school board members agreed that the photos themselves - another photo showed Allen sitting at a kitchen table, in a private residence, where there were three long-arm rifles arranged in a triangle fashion with one of the rifles pointing to a BHS school badge - represent a very real and grave danger to the schools. In addition, testimony from school administrators indicated that further disruptions in school and outside of school continue to this day because of the posting of the photos and the subsequent action taken by the schools.
"We have to weigh each of the charges as relating to the safety of the students," said school board Vice President Ralph Nodwell. "I am greatly concerned with the safety of our students when I look at these photos."
Longtime school board member Martha Toth agreed saying that she sees the photos as intimidation and a threat to students and staff at BHS.
"(The gang-like activity) is something that tends to bleed over into the schools. It tends to escalate and that scares me. These issues are worthy of expulsion," she said.
Allen, after the hearing, disagreed with school board members' assertions that he was in a gang and that he represented a threat to the school and called the hearing "unfair." Counsel for the students made it very clear that before this incident, Allen had not been in trouble at BHS and maintained a 3.0 GPA.
"They just threw me out because of some pictures. It wasn't a fair trial," Allen said.
In an interview with a local TV station, Allen said that he wanted people to know that the pictures being investigated "we're not him."
"I had a 3.0 grade point average. I was going to go to college, but I think that will be hard now with an expulsion on my record."
Allen's mother, Veronica Young, broke into tears while talking to TV reporters as she said that the school board ruined her son's future.
Allen's grandmother Alma Young has attended all of the hearings up to this point. She defended her grandson saying if she actually thought that Anthony was a "gangbanger" she would not be attending to show support for the students.
"I'd probably be off hiding somewhere," she said.
"(The school board) has blown this very much out of proportion. Just look at these kids, they're young men and they aren't into drugs or selling drugs or anything like that.
"I don't think these hearings are fair. These board members have obviously already made up their minds about these kids. They're trying to act like these kids are gangbangers - they're just kids. I believe in my grandson. I would put my life on the line for him."
The testimony
Testimony and cross examination of three witnesses, all high school administrators, focused on several points:
The level of Allen's involvement in the photos as it related to the charges he faced.
Whether the schools could charge Allen with the weapons or alcohol/drug possession at all because it was not clear when the students were on school grounds during the night of the homecoming dance.
Whether Allen was involved in a gang called MADE Squad or if it was simply a rap group.
Whether the photos and subsequent action taken by the schools had resulted in further disruptions, in and out of school, caused in part or wholly because of MADE Squad members.
Counsel for the schools, Lori Steinhauer from Collins and Blaha law firm, questioned High School Principal Shelia Brown as to her involvement in the investigation the led to the expulsion recommendation.
Brown indicated through testimony that she was actively involved in the investigation and that it had started as result of a concerned parent calling the school after viewing the photos posted on Myspace.com.
When asked what she thought after looking at the photos, Brown said she was very disturbed and immediately identified the photos as a threat to not only the students at the high school, but also to the students pictured in the photos.
"I have 2,000 kids in the high school that I need to ensure their safety. I have to keep safety a number one priority," she said.
Brown testified that she had attended classes for school administrators that focused on gangs and identifying them. She said the charge of gang-like activity came as a result of her studying the evidence and using her own personal knowledge and experience.
She said the significance of one of the photos that depicted a rifle pointing to a BHS school identification badge, is that they are trying to represent to rival gangs either they are protecting the high school and that is their turf or that they plan on inciting violence at the high school.
During cross examination, Woodards asked Brown about the timeline on the night of the homecoming dance and about an affidavit from the driver of the limousine that transported the students that night.
Brown said that, as she understood it, the limo picked up several students at a residence prior to the dance. She said five of the seven students checked into the dance that night - Allen was not one of them.
The limo driver was instructed to pick up students from the dance and then drive to the Five Points area in Belleville to pickup another student.
Afterwards, the group went to Applebees restaurant on Belleville Road. Brown testified that according to the limo driver's testimony, a group of "older men" wearing bandannas over their faces surrounded the limo while in the parking lot of Applebees and were attempting to confront the students. The limo driver then instructed the kids to get back into the limo and they drove off.
Woodards made several objections as to the affidavit from the limo driver as he was not present at the hearings and could not be cross examined to determine his credibility. The affidavit was allowed into evidence, however, as Steinhauer offered that Woodards could cross Brown as to the validity of the limo driver's testimony.
Woodards questioned Brown as to whether she could determine where the limo was when the photo of Allen holding the alleged bag of marijuana was taken. Brown said she could not but the school handbook covers violations to and from school and school-related functions.
"Then where is the substance for that charge. You can't even establish if the marijuana is real or not and you can't say whether the limo was on school ground at the same time the students possessed the alleged drugs - but you charged him with it anyway," Woodards said.
Woodards argued that school officials recommended several charges against Allen that didn't jive with the evidence they had been presented in the photos. That argument eventually led to the removal of two charges facing Allen.
"What was the basis for the recommendation of the weapons possession charge? He is clearly not possessing any weapons in any of these photos while on school property - but you charged him with anyway," he said.
Woodards also questioned the validity of the testimony regarding the continued disruptions at school. He argued that the schools have no specific knowledge that Allen was involved, or had personally caused, any of these documented disruptions since the discovery of the photos and actions taken by school officials.
Brown testified that there has been a number of potential fights and skirmishes broken up by teachers that she believes is related to MADE Squad and their rival gang the MMB's, which stands for Money Murder Boys. Brown also said they were made aware by a concerned parent of an incident that occurred on Nov. 24 at the Van Buren Eagles Lodge on Beck Road, where "a group of 20 to 30 boys from the MMB," got into a fight with members of the MADE Squad. She said she was told one of the students was beaten severely and received medical care.
Again, Woodards asked Brown whether she had personal knowledge that Allen was involved with the Eagles Lodge incident or any of the incidents at the schools. Brown said she didn't know.
Similar testimony was given by Superintendent of schools Pete Lazaroff and Assistant Principal Larry Warren, who described their involvement in the investigation and why they recommended the charges that led to the student's expulsion.
During his closing remarks, Woodards asked school board members to look at the law as it applied to his client. He said the only photo that showed Allen involved with weapons was at a private residence where the schools' jurisdiction does not reach. He reiterated the fact that they could not prove the marijuana was real, and that the criminal acts charge failed on its face because they had no evidence that Allen had committed a crime according to state or federal law.
"Do I like what I see in these photos? Absolutely not, but I don't like photos of white men from the NRA holding rifles saying, 'From my cold, dead hands.'
"Let's not rush to judgment with respect to decisions regarding our children. We must not let zero tolerance become intolerance," Woodards said.
Albert McGee II
School board members agreed during conclusion of Monday's disciplinary hearing for Albert McGee, that his case was less severe than Allen's as McGee was not pictured to be holding any illegal contraband whatsoever in the photos. Because of that, his sentence was reduced to suspension for the remainder of the year and it is possible that McGee could re-enroll into the Van Buren schools after a reinstatement hearing that could take place sometime in June. McGee, along with Allen, will have the option to receive private tutoring provided by Van Buren schools for the rest of the semester.
McGee was charged with just two violations of the Van Buren Schools' student handbook after counsel for the schools elected to drop the criminal acts charge, drug use and possession and weapons use and possession. They did, however, uphold the charges of gang-like activity and intimidation leading to disruptions in school.
Victor Hogan, school board secretary, said he felt it was important to make a distinction between McGee's and Allen's case as McGee was not pictured to be holding any of the look-alike weapons or narcotics.
School Board member Martha Toth disagreed saying that McGee clearly is not holding any illegal contraband in the photos, but he is still heavily involved in posing for the photos which represents "a taunt" to the group's rivals the MMB, in her mind. She said that represents a serious danger to the safety of the student population.
She also said that she was leaning toward granting the lesser sentence of suspension but after listening to three recently produced songs performed by the students facing the charges which contained references to the MMB and the schools, she changed her mind. The songs had been downloaded from Myspace.com and played for the hearing by Superintendent Lazaroff.
"I don't want him in this school," she said.
McGee II called the hearing unfair saying that the school board members were making their decision based on opinions and not facts.
"They all blew this way out of proportion. I'm an honor roll student, I was a starter on varsity football and track. I was looking at athletic scholarships to go to college before all of this happened," McGee II said.
When asked if there was a cultural or racial divide between the students facing charges and the school board, McGee II said he didn't think it was all about that but rather school board members did not look at the facts and had already made up their minds.
The testimony
During testimony, Assistant Principal Larry Warren said he was involved with the investigation that eventually led to recommendation for expulsion for McGee. When asked to identify two of the photos that depicted the students in the limousine, he picked out McGee's picture and said that both of the photos appeared to be from the same limo as the ceilings were similar.
Warren also said that during an interview with McGee, while the investigation was ongoing, McGee had told him that "the weed was somebody else's," referring to the alleged bag of marijuana shown in the photos of the limousine. Counsel for the students had argued that they had n knowledge that the marijuana was real.
When questioning Warren about the photos, Woodards asked if he could see McGee possessing anything that could be considered illegal contraband, to which Warren said that he couldn't see anything like that but he was among the students who were depicted in the kitchen table photos that had several weapons, ammunition, cash and what appears to be cocaine in the middle of the table.
Woodards argued that the schools cannot take all of these unrelated photos (some of the photos were taken and posted on the Internet more than a year ago) link them together and try to create something that isn't there.
"There has been no testimony given that Albert had anything to do with posting the photos on Myspace, or that he even knew they were up there," Woodards said.
Warren testified that he has fielded between 15 to 20 complaints from parents who are worried about allowing their kids to continue to attend Belleville High School. There was later testimony from Superintendent Lazaroff that there was a record number of absences on the Friday after the first hearing.
Again, Woodard vehemently argued that the schools have no basis to connect any of the students facing charges to any of the incidents occurring at the high school or outside of the high school.
"There is no evidence that suggests these boys are causing any trouble at all!" Woodards said.
Woodards questioned Warren as to McGee's disposition while he was attending BHS. Warren said he had knowledge that Albert was involved in only one disciplinary incident when he was tardy to class.
"But he later showed us a note that he had a doctor's appointment," Warren said.
Woodards then asked Warren to read aloud a progress report, where McGee's French language teacher said, "Albert was a pleasure to have in class."
Woodards asked Warren why didn't he talk to McGee after he saw the photos, instead of moving right to the recommendation for expulsion.
"At that point it was too late. I was somebody would have talked to all of these boys before they put those pictures out there.
"I feel like what has happened has come to the point where it is affecting school itself. (The photos) are intimidating, it's a threat unto itself and it's a detriment to these students. I do believe they represent a threat to this school," Warren said.
Woodards, throughout the hearing, had argued that no crimes had been committed yet school officials had recommended charges along those lines. During her closing remarks, Steinhauer responded saying that school districts don't need to wait until a crime has been committed in order to take proactive steps to ensure the safety of the student body.
"We have had continued fights and verbal altercations in the schools because of this. It is representing a disruption in normal school activity.
"Even without the specific language that deems students can be disciplined for incidents to and from school, they have the right to take action if they feel there is a real threat posed to the schools. We are not going to wait for another Columbine to protect the students," Steinhauer said.
During his closing remarks, Woodards asked, "What kind of society are we living in when we are punishing people for things they might do?
"We have a cultural divide here. Albert is a kid who was not a problem student, he has always insisted that he is a rapper - not a gangbanger.
"Those photos had been posted on Myspace for quite some time. You can't create evidence after the fact. After all of that, all you have is a photo of Albert inside of a private residence."
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