Father jailed after daughter fails to get diploma

thewise1 · 05-13-2008, 12:57 PM

Father jailed after daughter fails to get diploma
Sentenced for contributing to the unruliness or delinquency of a minor

CINCINNATI - A man ordered by a judge to make sure his daughter studied has found himself in jail because she failed to earn a high school equivalency diploma.

Brian Gegner, who lives near Cincinnati, was sentenced last week to 180 days in jail for contributing to the unruliness or delinquency of a minor.

He was ordered months ago to make sure his 18-year-old daughter Brittany Gegner, who has a history of truancy, received the diploma known as GED — something that hasn't happened yet.

Brittany Gegner, who said Monday that she plans to take a required GED test this month, said her father shouldn't be blamed for her failure because she has been living with her mother.

"It was my wrongdoing, not his," said Brittany Gegner, whose fiance and 18-month-old daughter also live at her mother's home. "He shouldn't have to go to jail for something I did."

Her mother agrees.

"Brittany is almost 19 years old now and I think it's unfair to put her father in jail," said Shana Roach. "She's an adult now, and it's not right to rip an innocent man from his home."

Juvenile Court administrator Rob Clevenger Jr. said Monday that the court still has jurisdiction in the case because Brittany Gegner was a juvenile when the truancy problems began and when the charge against Brian Gegner was filed in 2007.

A hearing on a motion filed by Brian Gegner's attorney to reconsider the sentence is scheduled for Friday. Messages seeking comment were not returned Monday at the offices of defense attorney Tamara Sack and the prosecutor.

Brian Gegner's wife, Stephanie Gegner, said she and her husband are afraid he will lose his job if he remains in jail. She said they tried to keep his daughter in school.

"You'd take her to school and she'd go out the other door," Stephanie Gegner said.

Interesting story. We are always so eager to say 'where are the parents?', and this judge apparently took that to a new level that I personally haven't heard of in the past.

I'm not really sure how I feel about this except to say that free will doesn't magically turn on when a kid turns 18; They get it much earlier and it's up to a parent to guide them as best as possible while allowing them to become more independent. I'm not sure that a parent should be held responsible to this degree for the actions of their children; You can't make them want to learn if you start too late.

WickedLou9 · 05-13-2008, 01:19 PM

It sounds like the parents had a history of not being involved and it resulted in thier kid constantly skipping school and getting in trouble. If there was a previous ruling that said the kid needed to get a GED, the family must have been in court atleast a few times before this. There is probably alot of history to this story.
Even so, 180 days seems like alot. That's 6 months in jail? So taking the kid's father away is going to make it better? I dunno. It's a shitty situation

thewise1 · 05-13-2008, 01:36 PM

Originally Posted by WickedLou9

It sounds like the parents had a history of not being involved and it resulted in thier kid constantly skipping school and getting in trouble. If there was a previous ruling that said the kid needed to get a GED, the family must have been in court atleast a few times before this. There is probably alot of history to this story.
Even so, 180 days seems like alot. That's 6 months in jail? So taking the kid's father away is going to make it better? I dunno. It's a shitty situation

Yeah, definitely a shitty situation.

Did you hear about the texas school district that is asking for $385k to put ankle bracelets with GPS on their truants?

jasno · 05-13-2008, 03:14 PM

Please explain to me how a parent can force a 16-18yr old to pass an exam?

You can make sure your children sit down and study, but how can you make your child smarter? What if this girl was really 'ditzy' and lacked common sense? What if the father did his best but his child still failed the test?

I do agree with forcing parents to take part in their childrens education, its their obligation (which most parents seem to think sending their children off on the bus in the morning and buying them a few pencils is enough on their part)

But is sending this Father to jail for 6months justice? Will it help the family in the long run? Will it help the community in the long run?

If I was the judge and wanted to teach the Father a lesson I would have sentenced him to some community service at the boys and girls club, or a school, etc etc....

I even heard that the 16yr old who failed the test didnt even live with the father at the time of the test, she lived with here mother, but 'legally' was under her father's custody.

LOAD OF BS here. The judge is over stepping his jurisdiction imo, and this is not justice.

what do you all think?

WickedLou9 · 05-13-2008, 03:17 PM

Originally Posted by thewise1

Yeah, definitely a shitty situation.

Did you hear about the texas school district that is asking for $385k to put ankle bracelets with GPS on their truants?

No I hadn't heard about that. That's alot of money for something that should probably be the parents job

thewise1 · 05-13-2008, 03:27 PM

Originally Posted by WickedLou9

No I hadn't heard about that. That's alot of money for something that should probably be the parents job

Agreed... and it reinforces the idea that school is a jail for all kids. They should spend that money hiring 5-8 teachers instead of forcing kids who don't want to learn... to learn.

Kytro · 05-13-2008, 06:13 PM

This is totally inappropriate, no one should be responsible for the actions of another adult in this way.

nbiggershaft · 05-13-2008, 11:51 PM

I thought truancy laws didn't apply past middle school.

7960 · 05-14-2008, 02:55 PM

Originally Posted by jasno

Please explain to me how a parent can force a 16-18yr old to pass an exam?

You can make sure your children sit down........

You can't force someone to study. You can put books in front of them and make them sit there but you can't force them to do anything else.

This guy won't spend a day in jail. IMO the judge is grandstanding and all the guy needs to do is say "appeal" and the entire thing will be thrown out.

motivez · 05-19-2008, 04:13 PM

This seems really retarded

A) She's an adult. She's responsible for her own actions, and if she is too stupid to pass a test or doesn't want an education, I don't see how anyone can force her to get one unless it's part of some other agreement, like probation or some such.. which it doesn't seem like it is.

How can he be charged with something relating to a "minor" when she's 18? Since when is that still a minor?

B) She's been living with her mother, why is the father responsible at all if she hasn't been living with him? If anyone should be held responsible other than the girl herself (which it shouldn't, but if), it'd fall to those she'd been living with..

kombayn · 05-19-2008, 05:02 PM

Damn, I'll do all my child's homework if I'm going to go to jail for this shit. Jesus Christ!

6SpeedTA95 · 05-19-2008, 09:55 PM

Originally Posted by motivez

This seems really retarded

A) She's an adult. She's responsible for her own actions, and if she is too stupid to pass a test or doesn't want an education, I don't see how anyone can force her to get one unless it's part of some other agreement, like probation or some such.. which it doesn't seem like it is.

How can he be charged with something relating to a "minor" when she's 18? Since when is that still a minor?

B) She's been living with her mother, why is the father responsible at all if she hasn't been living with him? If anyone should be held responsible other than the girl herself (which it shouldn't, but if), it'd fall to those she'd been living with..

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