On the Beat in the Bluegrass

Danville Police Chief Jay Newell said Wednesday that no charges will be filed in the case of a YouTube video depicting several boys making sexually explicit comments about two middle-school girls.

“From our officers’ review of the YouTube video, there are no threats or any illegal activity that we can see,” Newell said. “It’s some kids that have said some rude things and put it on YouTube. But there’s no law against being rude.”

In the 3½ -minute video posted over the weekend, one young man raps about the girls’ genitals while two other boys make a variety of gestures, some of which are lewd.

Doug Trantham, the father of one of the girls mentioned in the video, expressed disappointment that the boys will not be charged.

“Exceptionally displeased,” Trantham said. “Appalled would be a word. Very appalled at the failure of the legal judicial system.”

Newell said: “If we charged every middle schooler that said something about another middle schooler or that called them a bad name, if you think the justice system is bogged down now … .”

In order for the boys to be charged with harassment, Newell said, “we would have to have a continuing course of conduct that served to harass, alarm or annoy the victim.”

“Obviously, if there is a continuing course of conduct that we can look at and say this is harassing, … then we would see if there is something we could do with that,” Newell said. “Or if they get on there and say ‘Next time’ or ‘We’re going to show them and teach them a lesson,’ that’s different. That is at least an implied threat.”

The Danville Independent school district is also looking into the matter.