Gay teens more likely to be punished says study

"  Gay, lesbian and bisexual teens are about 40% more likely than straight adolescents to be punished by schools, police and courts according to a new study.

     School expulsions, arrests, juvenile and adult convictions and police stops are more likely to be meted out to them, said lead researcher Kathryn Himmelstein of Yale University who studied teenagers in the United States.

      The study, described as the first national look at sexual orientation and teen punishment, comes as a wave of bullying and suicide cases across the country has focused attention on adolescent torment.
      Research previewers studied 15,000 middle and high school students who were followed for seven years into early adulthood.
      Nearly 1,500 of the participants in the study identified themselves as lesbian, gay or bisexual, but more than 2,300 reported having felt a same-sex attraction at some point in their lives. More than 800 were in a same-sex relationship.
      A full report on the study will be published in the January edition of the journal Pediatrics."

by Dale McEwan..December 6