An open letter to the Press:
Louis Richard Paine III, attended Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School, in Parkland, Florida. While there he achieved a National Honors status, numerous academic awards, and numerous awards for his participation and accomplishments as part of Douglas High School’s debate team, a scholarship was named after him in his honor and he was awarded full scholarship to FSU in Tallahassee, Florida.
He was an honors student while at FSU and continued with his debate endeavors, mentoring and judging debates throughout the country until his transition on December 22nd, 2010.
My son, Louis was plagued with despair by the actions of administrative personnel of FSU, who irresponsibly without lucid judgment engaged in unsound and unethical bullying against him. Seeing no possible solution to the insensate and unconstitutional waging, disparaging conduct against him, he took his life.
I fervently believe…FSU’s email (dated, December 16, 2010) swelling with the unethical, deceitful, ignorant, irresponsible, self-serving accusations of two fellow students and the administration of FSU was the catalyst to Louis’ believing all hope was gone.
On the evening of his receiving this unlawful email that denied him of his constitutional rights, denied him of his dignity, denied him of securing a hopeful future, he wept uncontrollably about the weight of the immoral actions of his peers and his school. He confided to me he had lost all hope of being able to continue to survive in a country based on lies. He confided all his educational pursuits, efforts, dreams of a future had been demolished is one full swoop of callous disregard for a person’s life, his.
Louis’ tone was anxious and we spent over two hours on the phone engaged in conversation on how to resolve his school causing his demise. He was hurt and disengaged from life…from a solution…from hope for a future for his wife and himself.
He wept as he told me his opportunity was being squelched by FSU and they had the ability to prevent him from continuing his academics. He was so distraught, he spoke of the possibility of moving to Europe, just to finish his academic pursuits.
Louis was always enthusiastically passionate about education…about learning. Unfortunately, he learned too young about the betrayal and deceit underpinning the American “justice” system. This incident was not the first time Louis had experienced wrongful actions taken against him by FSU administrators.
The “keystone cops” FDLE report taken against Louis is a travesty. It is a ridiculous one sided, hearsay written report that is incredulously false. No one took the time or effort to listen to Louis’ side. No one noted that the two people who made the false allegations against Louis and his wife, Laura, were friends and/or relatives of the Dean of Student Affairs.
Further more, that the Office of the Dean of Student Affairs waited until the 16th of December 2010 to send Louis’ an email (at the beginning of the holiday recess), when the FDLE police report was finalized December 1, 2010 (despite there were no statements taken from the “suspects”) is an obvious calculated maneuver by the administration of FSU to crush Louis from the opportunity of continuing his academic pursuits.
I am most curious as to how many other students were betrayed by their institutes of higher learning.
The world will be a better place only if FSU takes responsibility for their actions, changes their procedures, examines their tainted policies that deny their students their constitutional rights, abandons the cancer of nepotism and demonstrates reciprocal respect.
Out of all negative, comes positive. I don’t believe Louis was the only student at FSU to be bullied, to be denied of his inherent freedoms, to be denied of hope in his future. FSU is in much need of repair, could the PRESS be the needle and thread to mend their bullying practices?
In my loving son’s memory,
Louis Richard Paine III May 17, 1990 to December 22nd 2010 in flesh only.
