Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Junior High Student Arrested for Doodling in Class
By
John Del Signore
Published Feb 5, 2010
Modified Feb 5, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
John Del Signore
Published Feb 5, 2010
Modified Feb 5, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
For years the NYPD has tried to send a clear message to the NYC student body that there is zero tolerance for defacing DOE property; in 2007 cops made an example of 13-year-old Chelsea Fraser by dragging her out in handcuffs after she wrote "okay" on a desk at her Dyker Heights school. It's NOT okay, Chelsea, but these punks just won't learn. On Monday 12-year-old Alexa Gonzalez was "doodling" her little heart out on her desk in Junior High School 190 in Forest Hills when she got busted, handcuffed, and escorted to the police precinct across the street, where she was detained for several hours.
The vandal-in-training was using what she says was erasable marker to write "Lex was here 2/1/10'' and "I love my friends Abby and Faith'' on her desk. Harmless "doodle" or wanton destruction of taxpayer property? "I started crying, like, a lot," Alexa told the Daily News. "I made two little doodles. ... It could be easily erased. To put handcuffs on me is unnecessary...I just thought I'd get a detention. I thought maybe I would have to clean [the desk]." Her mother, an accountant, said, "She's been throwing up. The whole situation has been a nightmare." But surely suing the city could make all those bad dreams go away! (The NYCLU has already sued the city over excessive school arrests.)
Alexa was released without bail, and has been assigned eight hours of community service, a book report and an essay on what she's learned from the experience, the AP reports. She says she has now "definitely learned not to ever draw on a desk." And yet the DOE is essentially apologizing; a spokesman tells the News, "Based on what we've seen so far, this shouldn't have happened."
Even the NYPD is backpedaling, with spokesman Paul Browne saying, "Even when we're asked to make an arrest, common sense should prevail, and discretion used in deciding whether an arrest or handcuffs are really necessary." Kids, the lesson is clear: the NYPD is getting soft on doodling!
Tagged
arrest
desk
doodle
graffiti
nypd
school
vandalism
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Forest Hills Stadium can keep its concerts under deal with neighbors
Neighbors had complained of traffic and loud concerts for years.
By
Ryan Kost
Published Oct 22, 2026 at 2:49 p.m. ET
NYC Council to grill Mamdani officials on collapsed Hunts Point Produce Market deal
Council Speaker Julie Menin called the $650 million plan "mission critical."
By
Elizabeth Kim
News
NYC Council to grill Mamdani officials on collapsed Hunts Point Produce Market deal
Council Speaker Julie Menin called the $650 million plan "mission critical."
By
Elizabeth Kim
NYPD arrests 17-year-old in fatal Midtown subway platform shooting
By
Charles Lane
Ex-Adams aide accused of pocketing kickbacks from community program funds
By
Samantha Max
MTA to begin 6-year project to upgrade signal tech on A and C lines in Brooklyn and Queens
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .