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CNN Live Today

Interview With Rachel, David Boim

Aired October 24, 2003 - 11:03   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: This is interesting controversy right here in Georgia. It is a school controversy in the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia. A freshman high school student expelled after a teacher read her private journal.
At issue is a story in the journal about a student who kills a teacher. The expelled student's family says it is all fiction and the school went too far. The school district disagrees.

Rachel Boim, her father Davis they join us from their home in Roswell, Georgia. Boims, good morning. Thanks for being with us.

DAVID BOIM, DAUGHTER EXPELLED: Good morning.

RACHEL BOIM, EXPELLED FROM SCHOOL: Good morning.

KAGAN: First of all, I guess we should say, and, Mr. Boim, maybe you can confirm this, that we're getting word that the school district has decided for now they're going to suspend your daughter suspension or expulsion.

D. BOIM: We just got word of that right -- just a few minutes ago. That's correct.

KAGAN: And so what is Rachel's status then? Will she be allowed to go back to school on Monday?

D. BOIM: As far as we know. I have not confirmed that with any members of the school board or school district. I have not talked to them personally. I've just been told that information.

KAGAN: Rachel, let's bring you in here. Do you happen to have the journal with you? I know journals are private.

R. BOIM: No. Yes, I have not gotten it returned yet.

KAGAN: Oh, so they still have it?

R. BOIM: Yes.

KAGAN: And so basically this is your private journal and your diary, this is where you write your thoughts, and lots of whatever one writes in a diary.

R. BOIM: Well, pretty much what was in there was just poems and some songs, and a couple of stories.

KAGAN: Tell us about the one story in particular causing the trouble.

R. BOIM: The story that I wrote about was my character falls asleep in class and dreams that she goes on a school shooting and kills a math teacher.

KAGAN: And how was it discovered if this is your private journal?

R. BOIM: One of my friends had it in class and he got it taken away.

KAGAN: I guess it was the art teacher accused you guys of passing it back and forth. They didn't think you should be doing that. So they took it, he read it, he turned it over to authorities. And then, Mr. Boim, why don't you jump in here. When did you become aware that there was a problem?

D. BOIM: We were aware there was a problem on Wednesday, October the 8. They called us, called my wife, my wife called me. We both came in, we met with the school -- some school administrators. They told us what the issue was. Told us they were going to talk about it that night. Meet with the them again the next morning to discuss it further.

But when we got there, they already made the decision to suspend Rachel for ten days, that would be followed by a hearing, and at this hearing she was expelled that was on Wednesday of this week.

KAGAN: If you can stand by with us, I want to come back to your story, because it's very interesting. But we do have this breaking news.

(INTERRUPTED BY LIVE EVENT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Want to take you back to Roswell, Georgia just outside of here in Atlanta. This is where there is a controversy swirling around a freshman high school student. She was expelled after her teacher read her private journal. There's the Boim family. Rachel and her father David.

I apologize for the interruptions, but when the Concorde lands, you go to Heathrow. That's just kind of how it goes.

D. BOIM: Bigger news.

KAGAN: Yes. Well, no, no, just different news. It was happening and I'm glad you're patient News; Domestic sticking with us here.

So, Rachel, for people who were not with us, tell me one more time what exactly was written in your journal that school officials found so disturbing?

R. BOIM: It was a story about a girl who falls asleep in class and shoots her math teacher and then she wakes up and nothing happens.

KAGAN: All right now, Dad, let's bring you in here. When we hear it with this story -- another thing that's interesting is you moved to Atlanta area from just outside of Denver, which of course, knows school violence only too well from the Columbine incident.

As a parent aren't you concerned when you learn your child is writing something like that?

D. BOIM: Not really. We talk about a lot of things in our family. We live in a world where violence is around us and it's discussions that we have with our children. So that's not a surprise for us.

The fact that Rachel is really tied to the Denver area, I think it put it in her mind more so. But writers write about what they experience in life and what happens around them. So, that is not a surprise. It wasn't a huge concern.

But we understood that the administrators were concerned. And at first we understood. They live in a what of world. What if this should have actually happened? So we are sympathetic about that.

But we also expect common sense to kick in at some time. And we really -- I think the real issues are beyond Rachel. The real issues are the Fourth Amendment and the First Amendment and the right to think and write what you think and feel.

KAGAN: The -- we should say the school has put a -- has suspended the suspension, but they did give this statement to the paper, "The Atlanta Journal-Constitution." We were not able to actually touch base with them, though we did try.

They told the paper that the expulsion was for "inappropriate writings that described bodily harm towards a school employee" and that any time the safety or security of students and staff are out in question that investigate into the situation and if warranted take serious action.

We are talking about a zero policy that has caused some controversy in other places. You say, Mr. Boim, you understand where the school administrators are coming from. You just think they took it too far in this case because you know your daughter better.

D. BOIM: It's not me even knowing my daughter better. A piece of literature is obviously a piece of literature. So my question to the administrators the first day is are you telling me you're suspending my daughter for writing a story?

This is a process that's happening. We are seeing an erosion of civil liberties. And I wrote to some friends the other night that it's time that someone, even if it's ordinary people like our family, to draw a line in the sand and say this ends now. You cannot continue to erode our freedoms as citizens of the United States. We take this seriously. KAGAN: And many families also taking it seriously, as I'm sure do you the threat of school violence, of administrators that might err on the side of caution.

D. BOIM: Exactly. So, if the fact they brought us in and wanted to talk about it and say, Look, this is a concern. This is a disturbing piece. That's one thing. To go and suspend her for ten days, by the way without making a decision whether she's guilty or innocent, and then the hearing which I believe was truly a travesty.

When you have the types of people who volunteer to come in and testify on Rachel's behalf and for them to totally disregard their testimony and take the piece, literally, out of context and say this is a threat on a teacher's life, it's at that point, it's either absurd or abhorrent.

KAGAN: Rachel, I want to ask but, this was just a story as far as you were concerned along with a number of other stories you put down in the journal.

R. BOIM: Yes, definitely.

KAGAN: Do you want to go back to the school after all this?

R. BOIM: Well, I have a lot of good friends that go to Roswell.

KAGAN: I'm sorry, can you tell me that one more time?

R. BOIM: I have a lot of really good friends that go to Roswell. They have a good curriculum.

KAGAN: And your sister is there. If everything is worked out would like to go back to school?

R. BOIM: I would definitely go back.

KAGAN: All right. We'll be tracking it. As we said, when we booked to you come on this morning, this was an expulsion, in the meantime it looks like the school is backtracking and suspended the expulsion. We will see where it is in the future. We appreciate your time this morning.

D. BOIM: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired October 24, 2003 - 11:03   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: This is interesting controversy right here in Georgia. It is a school controversy in the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia. A freshman high school student expelled after a teacher read her private journal.
At issue is a story in the journal about a student who kills a teacher. The expelled student's family says it is all fiction and the school went too far. The school district disagrees.

Rachel Boim, her father Davis they join us from their home in Roswell, Georgia. Boims, good morning. Thanks for being with us.

DAVID BOIM, DAUGHTER EXPELLED: Good morning.

RACHEL BOIM, EXPELLED FROM SCHOOL: Good morning.

KAGAN: First of all, I guess we should say, and, Mr. Boim, maybe you can confirm this, that we're getting word that the school district has decided for now they're going to suspend your daughter suspension or expulsion.

D. BOIM: We just got word of that right -- just a few minutes ago. That's correct.

KAGAN: And so what is Rachel's status then? Will she be allowed to go back to school on Monday?

D. BOIM: As far as we know. I have not confirmed that with any members of the school board or school district. I have not talked to them personally. I've just been told that information.

KAGAN: Rachel, let's bring you in here. Do you happen to have the journal with you? I know journals are private.

R. BOIM: No. Yes, I have not gotten it returned yet.

KAGAN: Oh, so they still have it?

R. BOIM: Yes.

KAGAN: And so basically this is your private journal and your diary, this is where you write your thoughts, and lots of whatever one writes in a diary.

R. BOIM: Well, pretty much what was in there was just poems and some songs, and a couple of stories.

KAGAN: Tell us about the one story in particular causing the trouble.

R. BOIM: The story that I wrote about was my character falls asleep in class and dreams that she goes on a school shooting and kills a math teacher.

KAGAN: And how was it discovered if this is your private journal?

R. BOIM: One of my friends had it in class and he got it taken away.

KAGAN: I guess it was the art teacher accused you guys of passing it back and forth. They didn't think you should be doing that. So they took it, he read it, he turned it over to authorities. And then, Mr. Boim, why don't you jump in here. When did you become aware that there was a problem?

D. BOIM: We were aware there was a problem on Wednesday, October the 8. They called us, called my wife, my wife called me. We both came in, we met with the school -- some school administrators. They told us what the issue was. Told us they were going to talk about it that night. Meet with the them again the next morning to discuss it further.

But when we got there, they already made the decision to suspend Rachel for ten days, that would be followed by a hearing, and at this hearing she was expelled that was on Wednesday of this week.

KAGAN: If you can stand by with us, I want to come back to your story, because it's very interesting. But we do have this breaking news.

(INTERRUPTED BY LIVE EVENT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Want to take you back to Roswell, Georgia just outside of here in Atlanta. This is where there is a controversy swirling around a freshman high school student. She was expelled after her teacher read her private journal. There's the Boim family. Rachel and her father David.

I apologize for the interruptions, but when the Concorde lands, you go to Heathrow. That's just kind of how it goes.

D. BOIM: Bigger news.

KAGAN: Yes. Well, no, no, just different news. It was happening and I'm glad you're patient News; Domestic sticking with us here.

So, Rachel, for people who were not with us, tell me one more time what exactly was written in your journal that school officials found so disturbing?

R. BOIM: It was a story about a girl who falls asleep in class and shoots her math teacher and then she wakes up and nothing happens.

KAGAN: All right now, Dad, let's bring you in here. When we hear it with this story -- another thing that's interesting is you moved to Atlanta area from just outside of Denver, which of course, knows school violence only too well from the Columbine incident.

As a parent aren't you concerned when you learn your child is writing something like that?

D. BOIM: Not really. We talk about a lot of things in our family. We live in a world where violence is around us and it's discussions that we have with our children. So that's not a surprise for us.

The fact that Rachel is really tied to the Denver area, I think it put it in her mind more so. But writers write about what they experience in life and what happens around them. So, that is not a surprise. It wasn't a huge concern.

But we understood that the administrators were concerned. And at first we understood. They live in a what of world. What if this should have actually happened? So we are sympathetic about that.

But we also expect common sense to kick in at some time. And we really -- I think the real issues are beyond Rachel. The real issues are the Fourth Amendment and the First Amendment and the right to think and write what you think and feel.

KAGAN: The -- we should say the school has put a -- has suspended the suspension, but they did give this statement to the paper, "The Atlanta Journal-Constitution." We were not able to actually touch base with them, though we did try.

They told the paper that the expulsion was for "inappropriate writings that described bodily harm towards a school employee" and that any time the safety or security of students and staff are out in question that investigate into the situation and if warranted take serious action.

We are talking about a zero policy that has caused some controversy in other places. You say, Mr. Boim, you understand where the school administrators are coming from. You just think they took it too far in this case because you know your daughter better.

D. BOIM: It's not me even knowing my daughter better. A piece of literature is obviously a piece of literature. So my question to the administrators the first day is are you telling me you're suspending my daughter for writing a story?

This is a process that's happening. We are seeing an erosion of civil liberties. And I wrote to some friends the other night that it's time that someone, even if it's ordinary people like our family, to draw a line in the sand and say this ends now. You cannot continue to erode our freedoms as citizens of the United States. We take this seriously. KAGAN: And many families also taking it seriously, as I'm sure do you the threat of school violence, of administrators that might err on the side of caution.

D. BOIM: Exactly. So, if the fact they brought us in and wanted to talk about it and say, Look, this is a concern. This is a disturbing piece. That's one thing. To go and suspend her for ten days, by the way without making a decision whether she's guilty or innocent, and then the hearing which I believe was truly a travesty.

When you have the types of people who volunteer to come in and testify on Rachel's behalf and for them to totally disregard their testimony and take the piece, literally, out of context and say this is a threat on a teacher's life, it's at that point, it's either absurd or abhorrent.

KAGAN: Rachel, I want to ask but, this was just a story as far as you were concerned along with a number of other stories you put down in the journal.

R. BOIM: Yes, definitely.

KAGAN: Do you want to go back to the school after all this?

R. BOIM: Well, I have a lot of good friends that go to Roswell.

KAGAN: I'm sorry, can you tell me that one more time?

R. BOIM: I have a lot of really good friends that go to Roswell. They have a good curriculum.

KAGAN: And your sister is there. If everything is worked out would like to go back to school?

R. BOIM: I would definitely go back.

KAGAN: All right. We'll be tracking it. As we said, when we booked to you come on this morning, this was an expulsion, in the meantime it looks like the school is backtracking and suspended the expulsion. We will see where it is in the future. We appreciate your time this morning.

D. BOIM: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com