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C-ville school board defends itself in ‘Cookie Caper’
We got this letter to the editor from the Centerville School Board late Friday afternoon laying out why the school board is fighting in court to keep Dillon Kelley from wrestling after high officials said he stole cookies from the cafeteria.
The letter (which has been slightly edited) was sent by e-mail after two judges, James Brogan and Mary Donovan, on the 2nd District Court of Appeals, said Kelley must be allowed to wrestle at the district meet. Here it is:
We have remained silent out of respect for the student involved and the ongoing judicial process. We do not, under normal circumstances, ever publicly discuss the details of student discipline matters.
But, in this case, the family involved, the Kelley family, has chosen to make the matter very public. That was their choice. The media have made our school district look very bad, in large part because all that has been available to report has been the statements of the student, his mother, and the family’s attorney.
We cannot remain silent any longer.
We have rules in our schools, rules which apply to all of our students. The student in this case knew the rules, and he broke one of them.
He stole food from the cafeteria. Much has been made of the fact that the item stolen was $1.30 worth of cookies, as if, had something of greater value been taken, it would have been appropriate to punish the student, but since it was “only cookies,” he should not have been punished.
We cannot enforce rules in that way, and we think that we would be sending the wrong message to all of our students if we did. The rules are the rules. Whether you violate them in a major way or a minor way, a violation is a violation.
It has also been implied or stated by many that the punishment in this case was too great for the crime.
Let us explain how it came to be that this student was suspended for a wrestling match.
Centerville, as do most school districts, has an Athletic Code of Conduct. All of our athletes are bound by it. They all sign the code and the student in this case did.
When a student earns a spot on one of our athletic teams, he or she agrees that, in addition to the regular rules which apply to all of our students, the athlete will abide by additional rules and be subject to additional penalties.
Our Athletic Code of Conduct was significantly revised several years ago. At the time of that revision, we decided to get student input.
Our principal and our athletic director gathered athletes from every sports team, including students who had been disciplined under the athletic code of conduct previously, as well as others who had not.
The result was the code we have today. What was surprising, but perhaps should not have been, was the fact that these student athletes had higher standards for themselves, and recommended stiffer consequences for athletes who break the rules than the adults did.
They were less willing to make excuses for, and were less forgiving of, violations. They wanted athletes to understand that in life as in sports, there are consequences for your decisions.
One such consequence established in the code, is loss of playing privileges in a game, match, meet, etc., in addition to any other penalty that they receive. Commonly, this means that the athlete is suspended from playing in the next contest after an infraction.
That was the conduct punishment established for cases of theft, and thus the one handed down to the student in this case. In light of his having stolen food from the cafeteria, he was suspended from school for one day, as have many other students, and he was suspended from his next wrestling match, because he is an athlete and had agreed to be bound by the Athletic Code of Conduct.
In this case, that next match was in the Sectional Wrestling Tournament.
That was very unfortunate and no one associated with Centerville City Schools took any pleasure in that fact. We do not, and cannot, change our penalties based on where an athlete who has broken the rules is in his or her season.
We do not have one set of rules and penalties for athletes in their regular season and one for athletes in the playoffs or a tournament. The rules are the rules, not to be arbitrarily enforced, but to be fairly applied to encourage the development of the high standards of personal conduct that our athletes expect from their teammates and that we expect from all of our students.
That is always our position and that was our position in this case.
We have been criticized for spending public money on a frivolous legal matter.
Again, the truth is quite far from what is being said. First, we carry insurance, the same as every one of the 614 school districts in Ohio.
That insurance is paying for our legal costs. We are not spending the public’s money for legal fees.
Second, and more important, we did not sue the family. We did not “go to court to stop Dillon Kelley from wrestling.” The family filed a lawsuit against us.
They sued the City of Centerville, the Centerville Board of Education, Centerville City Schools, and they sued four of our employees, personally, for doing their jobs. They did not sue simply to have the student be allowed to wrestle. They sued for “an amount in excess of $25,000” for regular damages, plus, “an amount in excess of $7,500” for their attorney fees, and, “punitive damages.”
They also asked for a temporary restraining order preventing the school district from enforcing the one-match suspension.
We responded when the family sued us. We answered their lawsuit. That is what every party does when they are sued.
If we had failed to respond, the family would have taken a default judgment against the district. What kind of stewards of the community’s tax dollars would we have been if we had allowed that to happen and paid thousands of dollars of public money to the family, as they asked the court to order?
We answered the family’s lawsuit and told the court that it was without merit and should be dismissed, because our employees had done their jobs, done them properly and we had followed our own rules, and the law to the letter.
We also asked that the court dissolve the temporary restraining order.
This entire sequence of events is very unfortunate, for all concerned. It takes the attention of the public away from the outstanding performance of the students and staff of Centerville City Schools and from the outstanding athletes who represent our high school, and has people talking about cookies, lawsuits and he-said-this-and-she-said-that.
We wish Dillon nothing but the best in school and in his wrestling career, which we have no doubt will be very successful. We hope that everyone concerned can put this matter behind them and move on to more positive pursuits.
Karen Myers, President
Dr. David Roer
Brad Evers
John Doll
Jeff Shroyer
Permalink | Comments (35) | Post your comment | Categories: Education, Ellen Belcher, Suburban Communities
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Ellen Belcher is the Dayton Daily News opinion pages editor. She writes about state government, education, the environment, higher education and all things Dayton.
Martin Gottlieb is an editorial writer and columnist for the Dayton Daily News opinion pages. He focuses on the political process itself and does such national issues as war, the economy, taxes and Social Security, as well as a hodge-podge of local and state issues.
Comments
By Starcastic
February 27, 2009 4:47 PM | Link to this
Its a pretty poor excuse for a parent that responds to their childs misdeeds by hiring attorneys rather than backing the punishment that their child agreed to by virtue of their participation in extra-curricular activities. What a miserable example, hopefully the child is suitably embarassed and the parents are simply doing this on their own.
By Do the time
February 27, 2009 4:52 PM | Link to this
Hooray for the C-ville School Board for sticking to its guns! This kid should have thought how his actions might affect participating in the wrestling tourney before stealing. He’s in the wrong and should pay the price. Period.
By Kay
February 27, 2009 5:08 PM | Link to this
Very interesting letter. It is valuable to hear from both sides of this very public story. The school board’s position makes sense to me.
By painfultruth
February 27, 2009 5:14 PM | Link to this
YES! And BLAME the DDN for fostering the “poor misguided unfortunate children” that are exempt from rules because it’s obvious the school is at fault here. The school district should countersue for millions against these parents that defend the guilty and curse the innocent. Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time!
By good job
February 27, 2009 5:15 PM | Link to this
An excellent response!
By judy
February 27, 2009 5:33 PM | Link to this
Thank you Centerville’s Board of Education for clarifying this matter. I personally am glad the truth came out. When one steals, one should receive consequences. Also .. . I hope and pray that Jenny loses this stupid lawsuit and does not receive a dime …perhaps she should reimburse the school’s insurance co. Great job Centerville High School and board. I am glad someone takes a stand and sticks by their decision!!!!
By Publicus
February 27, 2009 6:21 PM | Link to this
I’m still puzzled by one thing: Needing security guards to watch over cookies sounds more like something I’d expect in Dayton Public Schools, not Centerville, where all the children are above average.
By jon
February 27, 2009 6:47 PM | Link to this
To all of those you do not or will not listen/read the published statements of this incident please do not comment! The Student had three items in one hand(cookies included) , gatorade under his arm and money in the other hand. I might point out the Centerville High School does not have lunch tray, if they did this would of been avoided. The student hands the money to the cashier in which she hands him back change. The student assumed the cashier saw all the items in his hands and was charged accordingly. This kid did not steal anything, it was the cashier mistake for not spotting the cookies and charging the student for them. Under CHS policy the student is responsible that the items are paid for,fair enough. However this is how CHS is spinning this situation as the students fault, and that he is some kind of theif. In the real world business don’t let customers self police themselves if they did they would all be out of business.I’m sure everybody has gotten something for free at the grocery store because of missed item, but that doesn’t make you a thief.
By Yes!
February 27, 2009 7:02 PM | Link to this
I am so very proud of my school district and board today. As a parent, I sincerely thank you for fighting to preserve the values of truth, honesty, and integrity that, as this student and his family have shown, seem to be in danger of becoming extinct in today’s society.
By Mark Audas
February 27, 2009 8:09 PM | Link to this
Doesn’t the courts, the Centerville School System, and this boys parents have anything else to do? My God!! A $1.30 worth of possible stolen cookies. This is news? I’d gladly pay for the cookies myself just to make this story go away.
By Jack
February 27, 2009 8:38 PM | Link to this
Jon, you’d better get your facts straight too before you comment. The student was clearly trying to hide the cookies under another item in his hand. It’s really easy to put the cookies on top of the larger item. Others will set them on the counter next to the cashier. Trying to shift the blame to the cashier is way out of line. It’s time for the kid to be held accountable for his actions. It was an intentional act to hide those cookies and it’s time for people to stop trying to justify his actions.
By Joe
February 27, 2009 9:30 PM | Link to this
jon, you are wrong, as so many people are regarding this incident. The student did not, I repeat, did not have the cookies in his hand when he was at the cashier’s station. He had stuffed them into his pocket. After he paid for the other items, he sat down and ate his lunch. Then he pulled the package of cookies out of his pocket and opened them. Then, and only, then did the security officer intervene. The student was stealing, plain and simple. Just because he said he had the items in his hand, do not believe it. That is his story, but his story is a lie. So, not only is he a thief, but he is a liar as well. He deserves to be punished per the school’s athletic code of conduct. Congratulations to the Centerville school board on a well-thought out response to this situation. It’s good to know that there is still integrity in our school system.
By Disappointed CHS Alumni
February 27, 2009 9:31 PM | Link to this
I am still shocked and disappointed in CHS. They still continue to spin a one-sided story. The fact is the cashier missed it and the cookies were not concealed in a pocket or backpack! Dillon never lied about it and offered to pay. The Board said the punishment “is loss of playing privileges in a game, match, meet, etc.,” I emphasis “A GAME” it does not say the next game / match. Other athletes have served punishment the beginning of the following season…My understanding is the basis of the lawsuit was that Mrs. Booher / CHS would not review the punishment until it was too late for sectionals. The parents asked that the review process take place prior to Feb. 21 and CHS refused. The lawsuit was asking that this process take place prior to the sectionals. Again CHS refused. Why couldn’t CHS have evaluated the incident prior to Feb 21? If they had the review before Feb 21 then this could have been avoided! Another thing, the Board obviously avoided addressing some of the other questions such as the punishment to the cafeteria worker and the lack of lunch trays as a solution. I AGREE WITH JON
By Thinkaboutit
February 27, 2009 9:47 PM | Link to this
To all those who say theft is theft there is no diffrence between 1.00 and 5,000 dollars…yes there is its called Petty Theft then Felony theft and the degrees go up per the value of items stolen…..And once again from a law enforcement side this whole case was rediculous!!!!We have all seen discretion used in crimes higher than this $1.oo Theft, come on people use your heads…How many of us have violated the law such as traffic laws to which we were given a warning by law enforcement who used discretion. The boy served a suspension and he is still probably looking at the petty theft case at the juvenile justice center, and my guess he will probably get community service of some kind….Those of you who can’t seem to give this kid a break must be more holy and noble than the rest of us, and I exspect that you will, the next time you are stopped by the police on some petty traffic violation to insist that the officer write you a citation….Tell him to make it out to “Hypocrite”, Centerville police and Centerville Schools should be highly imbarrased!!!! I know for fact my agency would have never used discretion in this way and I now our prosecutor does not have time for such a petty case, hence we concentrate on real crime!!!!! This is clearly an attempt from the Centerville Board to cover the issue at hand that the school was wrong, trust me when I say I have arrested Centerville athletes in the past for underage consumption and yes O.V.I and nothing happend to those athletes. Well atleast they said they were athletes!!!
By disappointed
February 27, 2009 10:13 PM | Link to this
Once again the School Board only responds to what they wanted and continue to spin a story to their benefit. If they use insurance and make a claim doesn’t that raise your rates? The Board says the Atheletic Code “is loss of playing privileges in a game, match, meet, etc., ” I emphasis A GAME. Does not say the next game…other athletes have served punishment with the first game of next season. The Board did not address the cafeteria worker’s punishment nor the lunch room tray issue. The parents asked for a decision before the Feb. 21 sectionals but CHS refused to expedite the decision — that was the basis of the law suit, not to get the kid off. What a web Centerville Schools can weave. Yeah, I am glad to live in the district!! WHERE IS THE COOKIE MONSTER!!??
By mike
February 27, 2009 10:23 PM | Link to this
I hope the public does remember how pooly the C’ville school district has acted in all of this and denies them their next levy. In my opinion, you have permanently scared this child for the rest of his life and you should be ashamed of yourselves. I hope his lawsuit is successful.
By mike
February 27, 2009 10:25 PM | Link to this
And Mike, you don’t know what you’re talking about. The cashier messed up. The security officer should have only had the kid pay the $1.30. He didn’t steal anything. I suggest that guard immediately be fired as a lesson to other overzealous guards who think with their fifth grade education and a uniform that somehow they’re superior to the students.
By j
February 27, 2009 10:31 PM | Link to this
No, Jack you better get your facts straight. The lunch line at CHS has absolutely no order and structure to it. The lunch ladies don’t care whether they ring everything up or not. It has zero affect on them. If he was intentially trying to steal something don’t you think that it would be much easier to place them in a jacket pocket?
By photoman
February 27, 2009 10:38 PM | Link to this
“…Centerville, where all the children are above average”. Publicus, apparently not all the children are above average. (A school board would know that).
By jimmie
February 27, 2009 10:45 PM | Link to this
Making a charge that this individual stole something is one thing. Proving that he did steal is quite another. The school board letter states definitively “He stole food from the cafeteria”. How was this proven? Is there video? What due process was there to review the facts? Was there a hearing? I am less concerned by the amount of the alleged theft and more concerned about getting the facts correct.
By blah
February 28, 2009 12:02 AM | Link to this
WOW for the amount of ….. that the Centerville school system has done about levy’s, and the lack of funds it has. This just puts it all into perspective for me, if this doesn’t scream “WE ARE WASTING YOUR MONEY” I don’t know what else does. But on top of all that Centerville’s administration went way out of their way to punish this kid, and you can plainly tell that it was all just an accident on the kids behalf. Although I don�t live in Centerville, nor would I ever I just want to say that the ignorance is just gleaming from the school administration “MAINLY THE SCHOOL BORED”. You took something as small as a pack of cookies, and made it seem like he took someone’s life. As for making all this public, I agree with the mother I would show how ignorant the school was. As for the kid he deserves to wrestle!!!!
By JimBob
February 28, 2009 12:21 AM | Link to this
Nice letter CHS. Soon we will all say good riddance to this unworthy news story. Now let�s do a few things: 1) Start reporting real news, 2) Prosecute people in real courts rather than in the court of public opinion and 3) Investigate why CHS charges $5.20 for a dozen cookies when most grocery stores charge less than $4.00 per dozen for cookies made fresh in their bakeries (which aren’t subsidized by taxpayers).
By Alli
February 28, 2009 9:20 AM | Link to this
Listen up, Centerville. I am currently organizing a group to promote suppport AGAINST the tax levy in May. This poor kid GAVE the lunch ladies the correct amount of money for his food, BUT obviously the cashier couldn’t count and gave him change back. However, he was talking with a friend and TRUSTED THE CASHIER TO DO HER JOB. OBVIOUSLY, if he was trying to steal, HE WOULD NOT HAVE GIVEN HER ENOUGH MONEY TO COVER HIS FOOD. Get your facts straight. And good luck passing that levy in May, because you just screwed up the little chance you have.
By Lucy
February 28, 2009 2:30 PM | Link to this
The school board’s letter is very typical of anything the district does. CYA. They give the same old, same old pep talk about what a great job they do and proceed to “throw the baby out with the bath water.” Everyone knows that they selectively enforce “the rules.” It always depends on whose kid is to be gored. I am sure, as most of you must be, that Dillon was picked out of the crowd by choice. Even the cashier will tell you that she can easily miss items with the crowd and the system. Also, the taxpayers do pay for the insurance. The rates do go up when they use the attorney’s services. It certainly would be nice if the guard was questioned as to why he picked out Dillon. How did he know that he wasn’t charged for the cookies “when he took them out to eat?” I just hope they don’t punish him by cutting him from the baseball team. This is done as a way of getting back at parents who have the audacity to question “those in charge.” Happens in every district.
By C'ville mom
February 28, 2009 5:02 PM | Link to this
What an embarrasing mess this has become. We are forgetting the basic facts of parenting. I know that the parents of Kelly are only defending their son the best way they see how, but in fact have only made this a mess for thier son’s daily life. How do they think he feels everyday walking down the halls of school? Does he feel the eyes of his peers and teachers are looking at him differently? All of the other athletes have signed the code of conduct. Some have had to serve punishment whether they are guilty or not after some kind of infraction. I would imagine that some of them as well as their parents are pretty upset because they chose to uphold the code they all signed. Does this mean that from now on, any judge can overule the schools policies? Shame on the judges. Their ruling basically says that they do not uphold the schools principles. Whether he took the cookies or not, it is all on him. I don’t remember reading anything about his parents questioning the 1 day suspension. Are they sure this was not about sports? The best thing they can do for their son is to apologize to all of the kids who have served thier punishment and forget the lawsuit. Let Dillon show that he does not feel that he is above the rest. That he is just a regular teenager. Mom and dad, you blew this one!
By Dick
February 28, 2009 6:02 PM | Link to this
As a parent of a CHS grad and a Centerville taxpayer, I am greatly disappointed that we have wasted both time and money on such a riduculous situation. When my son was informed of this story he replied that he always knew the school was totally mismanaged. I have always voted for the bond issues before, but not this time!
By sad
March 1, 2009 8:44 AM | Link to this
It makes me sad to see that some “posters” on this site have obviously not read the letter. Insurance paid to respond to the PARENTS’ LAWSUIT! The school system did not initiate the entire situation. Please understand, that if the levy does not pass (because of this issue), the class sizes will have to go up, and the time teachers get to spend with each child decreases. Yes, it does impact instruction with 2-3 extra students per class. I’m sad that people will let the actions of one family determine their votes in May. Shame on you…think for yourself!
By Sara
March 1, 2009 11:04 AM | Link to this
Everyone here is missing the point. The kid may have forgotten the cookies were in his pocket or stolen them, either way, there are a bunch of “educated” adults and administrators arguing over $1.30 worth of cookies, “Because those are the rules.” Well how about we start focusing on the rules that really matter? Let’s say, the fact that we allow sex offenders to live on the streets with our children, because “they deserve a second chance” or the fact that Obama is getting ready to lend the country almost 800 billion dollars because “some banks made a “few” mistakes and now we are paying for it. I am not saying this kid shouldn’t maybe have to sit out a match, pay back the $1.30, maybe even throw in some extra laps, but come on, as a nation, we have more important issues to be focusing on and spending money on than this kid.
By A little truth
March 1, 2009 4:23 PM | Link to this
So many comments are based on inaccurate statements of the facts. Here’s the truth about a couple of the more glaring falsehoods. The Kelly’s were not forced to go to court because the School district would not hold a hearing before the student’s Sectional match. The high school administration dropped everything else and held not one but two hearings on this, within two days of the incident, with the student, his parents, their lawyer and a court reporter present. Then, at the family’s request, the principal reviewed everything again. All of this happened by mid-day on Friday. He took the cookies on Tuesday. His Sectional match was Saturday. The family’s attorney put all of this his his pleadings and briefs. It is all online. Second, yes there is video. It is not conclusive, but it does contradict two key elements of the statement the student wrote about the incident, immeadiately after it happened. The student did not have the cookies in plain sight. He hid them under another item he was buying. He also had a drink under his arm which he didn’t offer to pay for until the lunch lady saw it and pointed it out. He was not talking to his friend as he checked out. His friend had paid for his lunch and left the area. Finaly, the school did not have him arrested. He was never arrested, dispite what Ludwig wrote over and over. The school officials brought the matter to the attention of the Centerville Police Officer stationed at the high school. The officer, after interviewing the witnesses and the student decided that there was enough evidence to charge him. Not arrest him. There is a difference. Ask any police officer. He was charged with juvenile petty theft. A charge is akin to a traffic ticket. This one will probably be dropped and he’ll be told not to steal cookies anymore. Different aspect of this: I used to really enjoy Chick Ludwig’s columns but after seeing how blatantly one sided he was throughout this process and how he hyped this story ridiculously, I know not to trust anything he writes from now on. Shame on Ludwig and the editors for hyping this story and then having the audacity to ask why so many people blog about it and suggest that people should blog about more important things. Maybe if the paper wrote as much about Darfur and the Social Security and Medicare funding crises and less about cookie theft, people would blog about more important things.
By Susan
March 1, 2009 6:32 PM | Link to this
I have to say that the “cookie caper” at first made me question the actions of the Centerville School Board which was tough for me because I know most of our board members quite well. I know them to be dedicated,intelligent, caring individuals and I value the quality of service and professionalism they give, above and beyond, to our Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence year after year. But still, I did wonder if this just might be an over-reaction. Shame on me. After reading our school board response I realize they did what they always do - what is in the best interest of our schools and our kids. They set the right example by following the rules; and they protected our district from a frivolous $25,000 plus lawsuit. I ask Centerville parents to do what I did; talk to your kids. I asked my daughter if stealing food from the cafeteria lunch line was common - her reaction was “kids steal food all the time.” Apparently at lunch, this is a big joke. I’m sure if we could track the dollar figures it would exceed Dillon’s $1.30 cookie package hundreds of times over. Why else would the school employ people to guard the lunch lines? For Dillon I hope he has learned when he shops, do the math, then do the right thing. This may also help him from being overcharged one day. For those parents who will use this issue to vote against the levy, I am thinking you probably would have voted against it anyway. But let us be honest with ourselves and not use Dillon as an excuse.
By P
March 2, 2009 9:02 AM | Link to this
This story is out of control. It is a shame that this “case” even had to leave the walls of CHS. In my opinion, the kid knowingly stole the cookies. When I went to CHS, the lunch ladies would say out loud everything they saw when you were paying, so you knew if they missed something or not, and it was your duty to inform them if they missed something. Second, as a recent graduate and athlete from CHS, I can assure everyone that all athletes know the rules. Even if you get in trouble for something “minor” you will miss the next sporting event. I remember football players that got in trouble in the winter would run track in the spring so they wouldn’t have to miss football. The punishment fit the crime, and this surely knew the consequences. Unfortunately, it seems we live in a society where personal responsibility seemingly doesn’t exist.
By Doco
March 2, 2009 9:25 AM | Link to this
Your kids are not angels. None of them. They are manipulators just like you and every other human being. He was seeing what he could get away with. I’m guessing now he’ll do it again because Mommy believes him and enables the behavior.
By thefacts?
March 2, 2009 9:45 AM | Link to this
“A LITTLE TRUTH” AKA BRAD EVERS, SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER…APPARENTLY STILL CONFLICTING “TRUTH”. YOUR TIME LINE DOES NOT FIT. I BELIEVE THE INCIDENT WAS FEB 10, SUSPENSION FEB 11 AND YOU SAY A MEETING HAPPENED WITHIN 2 DAYS-FRIDAY-AND THE SECTIONALS WERE ON SATURDAY. SECTIONS WERE ACTUALLY THE FOLLOWING WEEKEND, 11 DAYS LATER. ALSO, SCHOOL WAS NOT IN SESSION ON FRIDAY, FEB. 13 BECAUSE WHEN I CALLED ON A DIFFERENT ISSUE I WAS INFORMED THE BUILDING WAS CLOSED AND NO STAFF WAS THERE. SO AGAIN SOME CONFLICTING INFORMATION BETWEEN WHAT I ALONE KNOW AND WHAT THE SCHOOL BOARD PRESENTS.
By A CHS Graduate
March 2, 2009 3:50 PM | Link to this
I can’t believe that residents are going to vote against a levy because of this one situation. Come on people. If you still have kids in the school system do you not realize it that if the levy fails it will affect your kids more than anything. I for one have two young kids in the school system and I will be voting YES in May because I want my kids to still receive the best education they can get from Centerville. I don’t care what the school/school board did or didn’t do to this kid. I know I don’t know all the facts of this story and I am not going to base a my vote on what I have read in DDN or heard on the news. Maybe some of you saying you will vote no don’t have kids in the system but have them in a private school that uses Centerville to bus your kids. How would you feel if they took your busing away because the levy failed. Why should my tax dollars go to paying for private schools to use our bus system!!
By ForumStaff
April 23, 2011 1:25 PM | Link to this
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