Arkansas Family Suing School After Curse Word Suspension

Tuesday morning during recess at Northside Elementary School in Rogers, 5 year old, Jordan Swindle said a cuss word. The use of foul language quickly resulted in an in-school suspension. Jordan's family didn't believe that punishment fit the crime.

Ken Swindle said, "It's like taking a jay walking offense and charging someone with a capital murder offense."

Swindle said his son admitted to cursing, "He said the 'F' word."

Swindle added that the punishment was excessive, "Jordan had to sit in a classroom, almost the entire day yesterday, alone."

So Swindle, who is also an attorney in Rogers, filed a lawsuit against the Rogers Board of Education. "We're not denying he said it, we're not denying that the school should've taken some action, but they turned a simple teachable moment into a punishing moment."

In the suit, Swindle is not looking for monetary gain. He says his goals are clearing his child's permanent record, and working with the school district to set a punishment protocol for this type of offense.

The Rogers School District would not comment specifically on this case, but Superintendent, Dr. Janie Darr is standing by the decision.

She said, "We do try to make sure that a child understands what he or she is doing."

"We do have policies and procedures which we try to follow, and we try to be fair in dealing with all of our students."

"I do support our principal, yes."

As his dad and his school district continue their legal battle, Jordan is back in school.