By Ethan Forman
DANVERS — Last Friday, a New York entertainment industry attorney took five seconds out of her lunch break to send a one-word e-mail to Danvers school officials: "Meep."
She did it on impulse and "in solidarity" with Danvers High students, she said.
What Theodora Michaels, 40, who lives on Long Island, said she got back from Assistant Principal Mark Strout surprised her: "Your e-mail has been forwarded to the Danvers Police Department."
To Michaels, this implied there was something illegal about her meeping. Turns out, Michaels will not be extradited to Oniontown anytime soon.
Police said Michaels was just being informed the school was passing her e-mail along to the department and the school resource officer, who was being kept in the loop about students' use of the outlawed term at Danvers High.
Principal Tom Murray has said he banned "meep" because some students were using it in a pattern of disruptive behavior. The word is a reference to the sound "Muppets" character Beaker makes, according to some students. The principal sent an automated phone message to parents warning that use of "meep" and other disruptive behavior could result in suspension.
The ban caused a tidal wave of backlash on the Internet last week, pitting defenders of free speech and those who felt the school had overreacted against those who said officials had a right to stop disrespectful conduct.
The story has received national media attention.
"The school resource officer and I were notified because kids were disrupting the school and potentially harassing people in the school," police Sgt. Robert Bettencourt said.
When Michaels saw her meep had been forwarded to police, she posted an open letter online to Murray on various Web sites.
"What bothered me, why would they send it to the police, or tell me they were sending it to the police, unless they were trying to upset me?" Michaels said this week.
Michaels said her open letter generated hundreds of comments and e-mails, many of which were also sent to the school. She was not advocating students breaking rules, but she was "vigorously" defending her and others' rights to meep.
When asked if the school system had been inundated with e-mails on the topic, Superintendent Lisa Dana said it had, but she declined to quantify the number.
"We have managed the situation and our school system is moving forward," she said.
Bettencourt said school officials referred a couple of the "meep" e-mails they got to the school resource officer, "so we would be aware they were getting e-mails." The school had no way of knowing who was sending them: a student, a parent or an attorney, Bettencourt said.
It is not against the law to send meep in an e-mail, Bettencourt said.
Dana said the schools have a memorandum of understanding with the police to keep the lines of communication open, and nothing more. Neither Strout nor Murray could be reached yesterday.
Police are not investigating, Bettencourt said. "That's the end of it for us."
Staff writer Ethan Forman can be reached at 978-338-2673 or by e-mail at eforman@salemnews.com.
