Student expelled for sending pornographic video

By Lisa Brody

A seventh grade student at Birmingham Public Schools' Derby Middle School was permanently expelled after making a video of himself masturbating and then sending it to a classmate.

It was reported during the last week of school which for the Birmingham Public Schools was Friday, June 9.

According to unconfirmed and at times conflicting reports, the student made the video on his phone of himself masturbating and sent it to a female seventh grader, who then sent it to other students.

Further reports allege the student also sent the video to some other students who viewed it and also sent it on. According to several reports, those students were suspended for the final two days of this school year and will be suspended for the first day of the upcoming 2023-2024 school year.

According to conflicting reports, either a teacher saw students watching the video and, according to a parent, was “horrified,” and contacted Birmingham police. Other reports say a parent of a child who received it contacted police. Captain Ryan Kearney of Birmingham Police Department said they cannot comment on the situation as it deals with a juvenile, and referred us to the school district, whixh declined to comment.

“It's an issue being handled by the schools. We do have a juvenile detective assisting the schools with this situation,” Kearney said. “No one is being charged criminally.”

Birmingham Public Schools Spokesperson Cortez Strickland provided a statement for the district, which said: “Due to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974, Birmingham Public Schools is prohibited from discussing student-related matters.”