A Towson High School student journalist who goes by the name “Parker plays” claims to have been suspended for “not following directions” and “being disrespectful”. Parker, clad in a Towson High Lacrosse t-shirt, alleges that Section 7-105 of the Maryland Education Act was violated at his school. He also alleges that undocumented immigrants were aided and are being harbored at THS, a violation of 8 U.S. Code § 1324 and 8 U.S. Code § 1327.
The Maryland law in question states, that the love of freedom and democracy, shown in the devotion of all true and patriotic Americans to their flag and country, shall be instilled in the hearts and minds of the youth of America.
Section 7-105 continues:
(c) Each county board shall:
(1) Provide each public school classroom with an American flag;
(2) Prepare a program for each public school classroom for the beginning of each school day that provides for the salute to the flag and other patriotic exercises that are approved by the United States government; and
(3) Require all students and teachers in charge to stand and face the flag and while standing give an approved salute and recite in unison the pledge of allegiance as follows: “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
(d) Any student or teacher who wishes to be excused from the requirements of subsection (c)(3) of this section shall be excused.
(e) Each county board may provide for any other patriotic exercises it considers appropriate under the regulations and instruction that best meet the requirements of the different grades in the schools.
(f) Any individual who commits an act of disrespect, either by word or action, is in violation of the intent of this section.
Towson High Assistant Principal John Stevens and the Resource Officers were supposedly contacted about these legal violations, but according to Parker, his grievances were not adequately addressed. He said email complaints were sent in the past and they don’t “come across”, meaning they did not go through or were ignored. So, he drove to Baltimore County Schools headquarters on Friday March 28, 2025 to speak to someone about what was happening at Towson High School.
During the video, Parker is shown escalating his complaints to the Baltimore County Board of Education’s Greenwood Administration Building A. He expresses his rights as an American and Maryland citizen in a matter of fact way that many adults aren’t capable of, only misunderstanding the nuances at times (such as filing an MPIA request as opposed to a FOIA request for public records).
The student journalist–which he made clear doesn’t mean he is affiliated with any school club–also points out that scanning government issued identification cards may be a violation of the U.S. Constitution’s 4th amendment and no statute was cited on the lobby sign. He was given a Visitor Information Form to fill out. Parker insisted on speaking to someone about his school’s issues, in hopes that they wouldn’t be easily discarded and so he could document complaints on video. He waited to speak with someone other than the receptionist for more than 40 minutes.
At around 25:20 into the video, an unidentified female employee told him to leave the building if he refused to stop recording. At 25:25 there is a cut in the video and Parker exits the building while a Baltimore County Police officer (Smith, badge #6773) is parking his vehicle. At 25:56 two males, presumably from the BCPS building, emerge and are seen on video. At 26:26, the BCPS employee, after asking why Parker isn’t in school, tells the police officer that he needs to be removed from the Greenwood property because he’s currently suspended from school. This employee was later identified as Richard Muth, who according to his LinkedIn profile was an Executive Director at Maryland Emergency Management Agency but is currently the Emergency Manager for the Department of School Safety.
31:25 into the video, Officer Smith asks if Parker has press credentials. That’s one I’ve heard more times than the old “Do you have an appointment?” line. About 25 seconds later, three additional patrol cars arrive to see what all the “commotion” at 6901 Charles Street was all about. Unfortunately, the audio stream failed right as the additional officers approached Parker. At 32:33, the officer (badge #6771) aggressively walked up to Parker, at which point he was triangulated by the responding officers. How much taxpayer funded automobile fuel was wasted at this point in time?
33:05, audio starts working again and Parker is explaining to the police the violations of law that may be happening at the Board of Education. He reminds the police officers that they swear an oath to the Constitution to uphold the people’s civil rights. His school suspension is then brought into question and Parker continues to be polite while addressing the government employees.
I won’t ruin all the details of the video for you, it’s a decent 37 minutes viewing if you are interested in the raw inner workings of citizen-government interactions. If Parker files a lawsuit against Baltimore County for unlawful trespass and is successful in litigation, taxpayers will have to pay the bill not the individuals recorded in the video.
I’ve emailed the principals for comment about this incident and will update the article if a response is received.
