A Minnesota principal threatened to punish students with suspensions if they held a walkout to protest their school permitting a student accused of sexually assaulting two classmates off-campus to remain in school. The principal also allegedly called police to trigger a trespassing notification that banned the presence on the school property of a concerned mother after she had confronted him about the matter after the school district board meeting.
Zimmerman Middle/High School’s principal, Marco Voce, was allegedly confronted by Cassie Bonine on Monday night at Independent School District 728’s board meeting after Bosine discovered that no questions from parents would be answered. Bosine said she was on her way to the restroom when she ran into Voce and asked him why he had not responded to an email she had previously sent.
After returning from the restroom, Bonine claimed, she asked Voce if he had children, prompting him to answer he had two daughters, The Daily Mail reported. Bonine said she asked, “And I asked him what if it were your daughters? How would you feel in this situation?” She later admitted she had raised her voice when she was speaking to him.
Bonine said that days later, sheriffs came to her home with a trespassing notification that banned her presence on the school property for the next year. The notice reportedly read, “The trespass notice is given due to your verbal altercation with principal Marco Voce, which you instigated, was witnessed by others and was acknowledged on social media and was considered to be aggressive, intimidating and inappropriate.”
Bonine concluded, “And now I am no longer allowed to step foot on the school grounds that my daughter attends. I can’t drop her off. I can’t pick her up. I can’t attend her volleyball games. I can’t go to her conferences. If she’s sick, I can’t go there. If she’s injured, I can’t go there.” She acknowledged she will try to transfer her daughter into another school district for the future.
“‘I just think that’s horrible,” another purported mother said on TikTok. “I’m not sure if I’m being out of line, but I just feel like if you were a parent of a child who sexually assaulted another person, why would you even want them at that school?”
Last Friday, some students staged a walkout after Voce had written to parents, “ISD 728 does not condone, support, or sponsor student walkouts … students who participate in a walkout that violates any ISD 728 policy, which includes any type of bullying, harassment, discrimination etc., may receive significant discipline which could include out of school suspension.”
One sign held by the protesting students read, “ISD 728 how would you like to be in class with your rapist?” Another read, “Victims shouldn’t have to relive their trauma daily.”
The town of Zimmerman lies 42 miles north-northwest of Minneapolis.