Student gets $637 fine for swearing 學生因為說髒話而被罰637美元

Student gets $637 fine for swearing 
學生因為說髒話而被罰637美元
2011-03-15◎羅彥傑

A Texas high school student said she took on a job waiting tables to pay $637 in fines stemming from using a profanity in a classroom.
一名德州中學生說，她靠著在餐廳端盤子的工作，支付因在一間教室說髒話所衍生的637美元罰款。

Victoria Mullins, 17, a senior at North Mesquite High School in Mesquite, said she was sent to the principal’s office after using a profanity in teacher Michelle Lene’s class Oct. 6 and the school resource officer issued her a $340 ticket for disorderly conduct/abusive language, The Dallas Morning News reported Monday.
維多莉亞．穆琳絲，17歲，美斯基特市的「北美斯基特中學」高中生，她說因為10月6日在蜜雪兒．琳恩老師的班上使用粗話，而被送至校長辦公室，校警給她開了一張340美元的罰單，理由是行為不檢與講髒話，《達拉斯晨間新聞》週一報導說。

Mullins pleaded not guilty Oct. 21 but failed to show for a Nov. 18 court hearing, resulting in a $100 penalty, plus a $50 fee when a warrant was issued for her arrest Jan. 21 and a $147 collection fee.
穆琳絲10月21日不認罪，但沒有出席11月18日的庭訊，以致被罰100美元，當她的逮捕令1月21日發出時，再加上50美元的行政費用及147美元的代收費。

"I didn’t really know what to do. I didn’t have the money to pay for it," she said.
「我真的不曉得該怎麼辦。我沒有錢付，」她說。

Mullins said she is now waiting tables to pay off the fine.
穆琳絲說她現在替人端盤子來支付這筆罰款。

School district spokesman Ian Halperin said parents should take warning from the incident.
校區發言人伊安．哈裴林說，家長們應該從這起事件中深自警惕。

新聞辭典

to wait tables：片語，伺候用餐、當服務生。例句：Bill worked his way through college by waiting tables.（比爾靠在餐廳當服務生念完大學。）

profanity：名詞，褻瀆神，引申為出言不遜、髒話。例句：John Kerry uses profanity to assess President Bush’s performance.（凱瑞用髒話評斷布希總統的政績。）

to pay off：片語，清償（債務）。例句：He expects to pay all his debts off shortly.（他預期不久就能還清全部欠債。）