PDF: Uniform arrest report
A cafeteria fight has led to a 30-day jail sentence for a recent graduate of Red Bank High School.
The punishment is “rare” and meant to send a message, Hamilton County General Sessions Court Judge Bob Moon said Tuesday in the case against former Red Bank senior Corey Davis.
“It was given for its deterrent value and to make people realize that violence on campus will not be tolerated,” Judge Moon said Tuesday after the hearing.
Mr. Davis, 18, pleaded guilty to simple assault and disorderly conduct, both misdemeanors. He could spend only 15 of the 30-day sentence in jail since, according to state law, local prisoners are allowed “two for one” credits on misdemeanor crimes, provided they behave well while in custody.
Many students who get into school fights and are charged with similar crimes are juveniles who are not eligible to go to the county jail. Others who are 18 often are given year-long suspended jail sentences and must simply perform community service to wipe their records clean.
But Mr. Davis had a history of violence in the school, according to school administrators who were at Tuesday’s hearing.
In the course of the March incident, Judge Moon added, the defendant assaulted Red Bank High assistant principal John Pierce when he tried to break up Mr. Davis’ fight with another student in the cafeteria.
It was the assault on the school employee that heavily influenced his decision to send Mr. Davis to jail, Judge Moon said.
“The safety of teachers is very important to me,” Judge Moon said. “And I have a feeling that much more stuff like this goes on at schools than gets reported.”
Mr. Davis also is charged with possession of a controlled substance in a different case, according to court records.
Mr. Davis’ mother, Erica Davis Mapp, said Tuesday by phone that her son is a “good kid” who graduated this year from Red Bank High and is well-liked.
Although she said the punishment seemed to be “harsh,” she expressed the hope that it would indeed teach her son a lesson.
“I’m hoping this will let Corey know that you can’t break the law,” Ms. Davis said.