In 2014, 12-year-old Tamir Rice was fatally shot by a police officer while playing with an airsoft toy gun in a Cleveland park. February of this year, two boys around the same age were arrested after playing with BB guns in a Cleveland suburb.
Their sentence? To write essays about Tamir Rice.
The boys, ages 12 and 15, both pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge, Cleveland.com reports. Magistrate Je’Nine Nickerson ordered them to perform community service and write essays about how their case is similar to and different from what happened to Rice.
“It is a very fine line when people have to make split-second decisions as to what is a BB gun and what is a gun,” Nickerson said in court, according to the news outlet. “When a police officer has to respond, in this particular climate, you are putting yourself at risk. You have to understand that your actions have consequences.”
Nickerson’s office told The Huffington Post she could not legally comment on the case.
A 911 caller described the two boys as white. However, Thomas Robinson, defense attorney for the 15-year-old, was unable to comment on whether that was accurate. But he said he thought the sentence was fair and that the judge had good intentions.
“I think what she’s trying to do is get them to engage in some critical thinking,” he said. “The circumstances were eerily similar [to Tamir Rice’s death]. But for maybe one or two little things, they could be in the same circumstance.”
He added that in juvenile court, the focus should be on rehabilitation, not punishment.
If only Tamir Rice had that option.
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