Matthew Whalen, a Senior at Lansingburgh High School and an Eagle Scout was suspended for 5 days for having a 2 inch pocket knife in a survival kit he had locked in his car. Because Lansingburgh Central School District and Superintendent George Goodwin hate Eagle Scouts so much, they added an additional 15 days to his suspension. The rule he violated was that he brought something that could be "considered" a weapon onto school grounds. Apparenlty a 2-inch pen knife locked in his car is "considered" to be a weapon whereas the many baseball bats on campus aren't.

While he was worried that this may affect his acceptance at West Point, he was just assured by the Director of Admissions that it would not affect his application at all (although he isn't guaranteed a spot).