SHELBY COUNTY, Tenn. — More than 100 Shelby County parents are in trouble with the law because their kids are repeatedly skipping school.
Monday night, the district attorney’s office held an event at an Orange Mound church so those parents could pick up their summons instead of deputies having to track them down for having truant kids.
They could also get food, support and talk about a remedy plan.
However, only six of the 117 parents showed up.
“If a child has more than five unexcused absences, it’s punishable by law,” said Megan Pietrowski with the DA’s Truancy Reduction Program.
The DA said truancy is an ongoing issue, especially since several studies show kids who habitually skip school are more likely to join gangs, engage in sexual activity and use drugs. Not to mention, 25 percent of juvenile crime happens during school hours, according to the DA’s office.
Just last month, Memphis Police said some kids skipping school fired a gun in a parking garage after getting kicked out of the Oak Court Mall.
“These are parents that we have tried to work with in the past, and we had to end up issuing a criminal summons,” said Pietrowski.
The parents at Thursday’s event avoided our cameras, not wanting to talk about why their children were truant. They’ll have to report to court next month to address the issue, though.
As for those parents who didn’t show up, deputies said they’ll be on the hunt.
“Then we will have to start tracking them down and knocking on the doors until we find them,” said Sgt. Mickey Keaton.
Under Tennessee law, a parent can face up to a year in prison and up to $2,500 in fines.
Right now, the DA’s office is working in 14 schools. They match truant students with mentors hoping to promote good behavior.