“That the Supreme Court refused to hear Andrew’s case is a tragedy in itself, but by failing to intervene, the court is legitimizing the perverse use of zero tolerance policies by school districts and the criminalization of America’s schoolchildren by teachers, administrators and police,” said Rutherford Institute President John W. Whitehead.

The decision not to visit the dispute came this week as the high court prepared to conclude its 2011-2012 session.

“There can be no justice in a nation where young people like Andrew Mikel have their futures senselessly derailed by school administrators lacking in both common sense and compassion,” Whitehead said.

The case developed when Mikel was 14. In December 2010, as a freshman at the school, he was expelled for the remainder of the year after being accused of shooting spitwads at classmates.