In the past week a total of 9 students are being expelled from Shadow Ridge High School for “possession of a weapon” while playing in the parking lot with toy SplatRBall blasters. The expulsion of these students is an excessive and inappropriate consequence as well as a severe abuse of power on the part of Shadow Ridge High School and CCSD. The decision was made without following CCSD’s own policy and procedures regarding these matters. One of the 9 students involved, who was also engaging in the exact same activity, was not expelled; that student’s father is a retired CCSD principal. A few nights prior to this incident a groups of students playing with the same toys blasters in the school parking lot were told by Assistant Principal Aaron Olsen and two CCSD police officers to simply put them away (after one of the officers also played with and shot the blaster). We are requesting that Shadow Ridge High School and CCSD reevaluate the expulsion of these students. These are good kids who were doing nothing malicious and were not in possession of “weapons” (even by CCSD’s definition as well as NRS codes). A warning/suspension is clearly a more appropriate consequence. The entire premise of the toy is to be a safe way for kids to have fun and is not a weapon.