05-09-2005, 12:34 AM
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#121 (permalink)
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Easy Rider
Location: Moscow on the Ohio
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I admire those of you in this thread who advocate using positive reinforcement etc.. in trying to deal with this 5 yr old's problems. However probably anything positive you can do will be overcome by ineffective parenting. Without parental support these children will probably be a problem for a long time to come.
Quote:
Ire aimed at handcuffed girl's mother
Weeks before the tape was released, Akins sensed that people were blaming her for the incident.
In an interview March 17 with the St. Petersburg Times, she said of school officials and police: "They're trying to make it seem like I'm a bad person and I'm not. But it's going to all come back on them."
Since traveling to New York last week to tape shows for A Current Affair, Akins has limited her public statements to the program.
On Monday evening's show, she said problems between her daughter and the assistant principal, Nicole Debenedetto, forced her hand. "I tried getting her school changed. I tried getting her class changed. (The school district) wouldn't do anything to help me."
On Tuesday, one of the show's reporters asked Akins what she learned from the case. "Listen to your kids because they are telling the truth," she said. "Because I sure listened to mine. And what she was telling me was the truth."
On Wednesday, Akins appeared with Jesse Jackson, who asked her, "What are you doing now about it, Inga?"
She responded: "Trying to get legal representation. And I ask for you to help."
On Thursday, Akins made several comments.
On her daughter: "She's a very active child. She loves to read and write."
On people who blame her: "I don't care what they say. It's not my fault. It's the School Board and the St. Pete Police Department's fault."
On whether the girl was raised correctly: "She was raised right. She was raised very well."
On those who say she's trying to make money from the case: "Get paid for what? I want justice."
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In addition to the 5-year-old girl, Akins has a son, 4, and another daughter, 3. Pinellas court records show she has been trying without success to collect child support from two St. Petersburg men who are the fathers of the children. The father of the 5-year-old has been arrested more than a dozen times since 1995, mostly on drug charges.
Records also show that around the time of her daughter's handcuffing, Akins was in the throes of an eviction proceeding with the owners of her St. Petersburg apartment. A note she wrote to the court indicates the problem involved subsidized rent payments from the St. Petersburg Housing Authority.
In a recent interview, Akins said the arrest prompted the state Department of Children and Families to investigate her. She said he passed a DCF review. "The focus should not be on her background; it should be on whether police acted appropriately when they handcuffed a 5-year-old child in kindergarten as if she were a criminal," said (Tricia) C.K. Hoffler, a partner with the law firm of Gary, Williams, Parenti, Finney, Lewis, McManus, Watson & Sperando, which on Thursday became Akins' new legal representative.
The 37-lawyer firm based in Stuart, is led by Willie E. Gary, whose nickname "The Giant Killer" came from nine-figure judgments against such titans as Anheuser-Busch and Disney.
Hoffler said the firm is preparing to bring its considerable resources to bear on the case.
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