LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

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SHIRLEY, NY (CBSNewYork) –One Long Island town is still buzzing over a mother accused of driving her 12-year-old daughter to an elementary school to allegedly fight another 12-year-old girl.

Suffolk County police say Daphne Melin of Shirley drove her daughter Jade to the William Floyd Elementary School on Sunday afternoon and egged her on to brawl with another girl she had been fighting with on Facebook.

Melin Talks to 1010 WINS’ Mona Rivera

“It progressed to a point where they agreed to meet at a local elementary school for a fight,” said Lt. Timothy Dillon, commander officer of the 7 precinct crime section who would not confirm that Melin is in fact the mother of one of the 12 year olds.

When the scuffle ended, police say the 32-year-old spit and cursed at another 12-year-old girl, who was watching the fight with a group of kids, after she criticized Melin for not breaking it up.

“The 12-year-old girl was stating that it was not right that this adult would be standing there watching this fight going on and not attempting to break up the fight,” Dillon said.

According to Dillon, Melin then grabbed the girl by the hair and tried to knee her in the head several times.

Someone recorded it all on a cell phone and posted the video on YouTube and Facebook, but police say the video has since been taken down and seized as evidence.

Melin, a mother of three, said it didn’t happen that way and that her daughter is the victim of a cyber bully. ”They threatened to jump her in school, oh don’t worry we’ll take care of her tomorrow at school,” she first told 1010 WINS’ Mona Rivera. “It’s just a horrible nightmare.”

“It’s not true. I’m not the monster they make me out to be,” Melin told CBS2's Jennifer McLogan. “I went to the principal last and week they didn’t do anything, said it was an online issue and they couldn’t do anything about it.”

Melin’s next door neighbor Gina Parrinello said she found the whole incident hard to believe.

“She seemed like a normal stay-at-home mom,” said Parrinello.

On Tuesday, the William Floyd School District issued a statement:

“We were alerted this morning by the Suffolk County Police that a Shirley woman was arrested in connection with a fight that occurred over the weekend on our school property.

We were informed that the fight may have resulted from postings on Facebook among a group of teenage girls who are also students in our district.

We have no further comment as it is now a police matter. We will continue to work cooperatively with the SCPD in their investigation.”

Melin turned herself in. She’s charged with three counts of endangering the welfare of a child and one count of attempted assault.

She was released on bail and will be back in court on December 1.




Wow!!!!! Some of the comments on the article are just

Message edited 9/13/2011 10:38:27 PM.

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

What's even worse is she than attacked a 12 yr old!
Disgusting

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

I thought you had to be at least 13 to have a Facebook account.

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

yeah I don't condone the spitting on the 12yr old spectator. Makes no sense to me.

However I have been that kid in this story. I was in middle school 7th grade. I was constantly bullied and threatened. We went to the counselor, principal and vice principal and they could do nothing. Mind you this was the 80s.

Finally the girl told others that her cousin was gonna 'get me' after school in the trails. I took matters into my own hands with my father's blessing no less. But he wasn't there, just sorta came to happen one day at school. Afterwards, the principal tried to punish me for it (expel me) but my father fought (not literally) for me. The school failed me. I was only doing what I had to, to protect myself. We won.

These days are too darned digital. We here on LIF just had an all out 'why are people mean' thread. Can you imagine what the internet does to confused, vulnerable, naive and impressionable children in their tweens and teens who really DO know the folks commenting??

But every parent can set up an account for their kids. And they practically HAVE to because every other kid has one.

Bullying has been around longer than technology though.

For the girl who got after the mom, i doubt it was done respectfully. And if her own child had been in danger I bet she'd have stepped in then.

I do not like that she went to view it. It seems like she pre-planned it. But I support the idea of telling your kids to protect themselves and not to be victims. I wonder how the mom of the bully felt? Did she know her kid had pushed another this far? Is she mad another mom did this? I would be if I didn't know my kid was a bully.

Ugh, I dread AJ going thru this age.

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

Posted by Kate

I thought you had to be at least 13 to have a Facebook account.

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

Newsday has the video of the fight on their site today. You hear her yelling "kick her in the head" to her daughter.

And sidenote, she should really lay off that trahsy eyeliner.

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

This makes me sick, and is just another reason why children should not be having facebook accounts. NOTHING good comes of it.

I'm also a little disgusted that the school said they could do nothing about the alleged bullying since it was online.

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

I'm definitely going to be in the minority here but I CAN understand why she did what she did. I think she took it too far but I can see it happening. Girls that age are not like the 12 year old's that we used to be. You have to see these girls nowadays!! My SD was involved in some bullying back in 7th Grade which I posted about recently actually. These girls are mean, cruel, relentless and they look like adults! I am not condoning what she did and I realize that they're still kids at that age but if you were in her shoes and your daughter was getting threats that she was going to get jumped, you go to the school and they do nothing, it may take you to the point where you snap. She had to do SOMETHING - obviously, she did the wrong thing here, but just my opinion. If my daughter was in a situation where people were threatening bodily harm, I would probably lose it to some degree also. Just saying.

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

I like to think that if something like this was going on with DD that I would have her back COMPLETELY, but for a 32 year old woman to physically put her hands on a 12 year old girl is ridiculous.

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

You disagree that I think she did the wrong thing? Please re-read lol

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

Posted by AnaMaree77

You disagree that I think she did the wrong thing? Please re-read lol

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

Posted by mrswask

Posted by AnaMaree77

You disagree that I think she did the wrong thing? Please re-read lol

Your first statement was that you understood why she did what she did. Later on you stated that she snapped and she had to do something. This is what I disagree with.

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

This is not at all suprising. Working with kids I have seen/heard plenty of stories of parents going to school playgrounds and yelling and threathening children. Anyone who deems this behavior acceptable or appropriate is sick IMO.

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

Ladies and Gents, we have the winner of the Mother of the Year award.

On a serious note, she is insane her poor kids, and if I was that 12 year old's mom who she attacked she would be in the hospital right now.

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

Message edited 9/14/2011 9:14:32 AM.

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

This is disgusting. Since when do we encourage our children to put their hands on other people? If people are threatening my kids bodily harm, I am pressing charges, screaming at the school until something is done, not driving them to the fight and wishing them the best. I am not my child's friend I am their parent. It is my job to guide and protect them. If that means taking it all the way to the administration and the police so be it. I don't believe for one minute that this woman did any of this. She clearly is lost in living through her child. What a disgusting world we live in!

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

She is disgusting!!! I don't know how a 32 yr old grown woman can act like that. I actually feel bad that the daughter has such a terrible role model in her life!!

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

She is trash.

I know how mean the kids, especially girls are now as I have a teenager and I see her facebook.
That does NOT condone a parent to do what she did though. No matter WHAT!!!

I wish these parents would pay attention what these kids are posting online as if they are, then they are just as bad as these kids, just like this woman.

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...

Re: LI woman accused of encouraging daughter to fight another girl...