Teacher suspended after Floyd comments
Disputed whether man could breathe
A theology teacher at Bishop Ready High School on Columbus’ Hilltop has been placed on administrative leave after saying during a virtual class Wednesday that it’s disputed whether George Floyd could breathe while a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck May 25.
Deborah Delprince, who has been a teacher at the Catholic high school since 1999, responded on camera during a virtual class to a student’s screen showing Lebron James wearing a shirt that says “I can’t breathe” in reference to Floyd’s death: “That’s not necessarily true, but it perpetuates a myth against police.”
The Catholic Diocese of Columbus released a statement Thursday saying a Bishop Ready instructor “made unsupported personal assertions and opinions” during a virtual class on Wednesday.
“These comments, contrary to school and diocesan guidelines, reflected extremely poor judgment and, upon learning of this incident, the instructor was immediately placed on administrative leave pending a detailed investigation,” the statement said.
In the video, after Delprince makes the initial comment about Floyd’s death, a student can be heard saying, “I’m sorry, did you just say it’s disputed that George Floyd couldn’t breathe?” Delprince said, “Yes, it is disputed.” The student asked, “By who?” Delprince replied, “the tape.”
“Did the medical examiner … I’m sorry, never mind, “‘cause I’m going to say something that’s going to get me in trouble,” the student said.
The video ends with Delprince saying “OK,” with a smile on her face.
Cellphone video of the incident shows Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin had his knee on Floyd’s neck for more than eight minutes — even after Floyd lost consciousness — and for more than a minute after paramedics arrived at the scene.
Chauvin and three other officers at the scene were fired by Minneapolis police.
On May 29, Hennepin County Prosecuting Attorney Mike Freeman announced third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter charges against Chauvin.
A more-serious charge of second-degree murder was filed against Chauvin on June 3, when the three other former officers — Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao — were charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder. mhenry@dispatch.com @megankhenry
Calling for a “more compassionate and more child-centered” foster care and adoption system, Ohio Gov. Mike Dewine outlined his request for another large increase in state spending to improve children services on Friday.
Ohio must increase the number of foster families to take in children while always striving to have children’s safety and needs at the top of its priority list, Dewine said.
Amid the opioid explosion and addiction, the state has about 15,000 children in the children services system, and 3,000 awaiting adoption, but only 8,000 licensed foster families, said the governor, who also is seeking a “bill of rights” for foster children and parents to outline what they can, and should, expect.
“They are waiting for us,” Dewine said of the children. “Our goal is to change the children services system in the state of Ohio and change it and get it right.”
Dewine successfully lobbied legislators to increase children services funding by an unprecedented $220 million in the current two-year state budget, but also said more than money is required.to improve the lives of children in crisis.
His pending budget request seeks a 58%, or $78 million, increase for children services in the first year to $212 million, followed by a slight decrease from that much-higher amount the following year.
Dewine wants $32 million, up from $20 million, over two years to expand services available under the Ohio START program to help drug-addicted parents and keep their families together before their children are lost to foster care.
He also is seeking a tripling of money to $24 million over the biennium for Wendy’s Wonderful Kids adoption program to ensure at least one case worker in each county works fulltime on finding homes for children in foster care.
The governor also is requesting $10 million to recruit more foster parents, and another $10 million to help keep vulnerable parents from losing their children, among other initiatives.
During his Friday news conference, Dewine cited examples of children he believed were mistreated by county children services agencies and called for improvements.
He cited two children who lived with the same foster family for nine years and who wanted to adopt them, but they only were given legal custody.
Another newborn lived with his foster family for three years, but was uprooted and given to “unfamiliar relatives.”
A four-day-old boy in foster care was placed with a foster family, and found to have been born addicted to an opioid, yet children services officials plan to return him to his birth mother, who remains addicted, Dewine said.
“This simply must change,” he said. “Every Ohioan should be outraged by these tragic stories,” the governor said, adding most children services workers do good jobs, but “outlier” cases remain. rludlow@dispatch.com @Randyludlow