Crime & Safety
Watch These Clips of 'Hopkins' Students Misbehaving, Tell Us How You'd Handle It
The school district is investigating videos that show apparent students smoking and damaging property, but Patch wants to hear your thoughts on what our role as a community is.
The investigation into a series of YouTube videos that show apparent Hopkins students vandalizing school property and breaking school rules is in the hands of the school district.
Last week, a YouTube user who goes by “KneeGoobers" posted a video on the popular video-sharing site that captured a student smoking on a school bus and chasing other students with flames from a lit aerosol spray can in a school hallway. Earlier videos showed a teen vandalizing a public restroom, a young boy smoking in Knollwood Mall and other acts.
A Minnetonka spokesman said Hopkins Public Schools is handling the issue and that the Minnetonka Police Department is not conducting any criminal investigation. St. Louis Park referred Patch to Knollwood Mall security—which had not seen the videos or been made aware of them.
Find out what's happening in Hopkinswith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The school district released the following statement from Hopkins High School Principal Patty Johnson:
We have had the opportunity to view the videos and are currently investigating the situation. The actions taken by the students in the videos do not reflect the high expectations that we have for all Hopkins High School students. Any time we are made aware of or have knowledge of a discipline incident, we follow through with our practices and procedures.
Find out what's happening in Hopkinswith free, real-time updates from Patch.
As of 1:30 p.m. Feb. 13, the videos had been recast as "private" on the YouTube user's account, which means the general public can no longer view the clips without the user's permission.
The video above shows excerpts Patch captured before the videos were reclassified as private. (Patch altered the video to obscure the young men's identities.)
Patch wants to know what you think:
- Have you ever seen teens misbehaving and intervened or wanted to intervene?
- When, if ever, is it appropriate for strangers to correct teens’ behavior in a public place?
- How much control do adults really have over the choices teens make?
Check out the video above and then share your thoughts in the comments section below.
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