Two teens in Marmaduke, Arkansas have become the recent examples of public shaming as a punishment after they damaged property and lied to police about it.
According to NBC 12, Kiara, 13, and Dillon, 14, were forced to hold signs on busy streets for hours during the weekend in Marmaduke and Paragould.
“I’m not trying to set a standard for no other parent. What I will do, set a standard for my child,” said Jack Aaron, the children’s dad.
“We’ve threatened them with the law, we’ve punished them, grounded them, taken their phones away,” said Kim Aaron, the children’s mother.
A report by Fox 8 detailed the events that lead to the embarrassing punishment. Dillon threw a stolen scooter against a building and Kiara lied to police about being present when the incident took place.
Once the truth came out, the Jack decided that two bright yellow signs accompanied by some nice penmanship would be a fitting punishment. Dillon’s sign read, “I tear up property! I lie to cops! I think like a punk,” and Kiara’s read, “I disrespect cops, I am a smart mouth little kid!! I’m sorry MPD.” After hearing from Kiara it seems as if the punishment is doing its job.
“All my teachers knew about it, all my friends knew about it,” Kiara said. “They were all asking me questions. Now, even if I wasn’t the one doing the damage, just me being associated with the people that were, that puts a bad name on me.”
The neighborhood also seems to support the punishment as a nearby driver yelled during the interview, “Good job, dad!”
“That’s what makes it all worth it!” Jack said.
The owner of the building is still deciding whether or not to press charges.
