A 7-year-old boy was interrogated by police deputies without his parents present after he was falsely accused of bringing a gun to school.
Fox 11 reported that the boy’s mother, Thea Marie Perkins, said her son, Solomon, attends Tesoro Del Valle Elementary School in Valencia, California, and was accused by another student of having a gun in his backpack. KTLA reported that on the day of the incident, there was a fire drill, and Solomon was outside talking to a student who had bullied him, when that student left and told a teacher that Solomon had a gun.
“They checked his backpack and saw that he had over 20 or so Valentine’s Day cards that he was going to give to his friends,” Perkins told the outlet.
Solomon didn’t know why the other student made the accusation.
Even though school administrators searched Solomon’s backpack and didn’t find a gun, they called the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station – but not Solomon’s mother. By the time Perkins learned of the incident and arrived at the school, she said half a dozen sheriff’s officers were already there and that her and her son’s civil rights were violated.
“[The school administrator] didn’t call one sheriff… there were six sheriff’s department officers that showed up,” Perkins told FOX 11. “Three squad cars, not cars but trucks, when I arrived.”
Perkins said Solomon was questioned by the sheriff’s deputies without her being present.
“This district has criminalized a 7-year-old African American child and I am absolutely angry,” Perkins said. “There’s really no reason for that after there was evidence that the accusation that was made was false.”
After Solomon was accused and interrogated, the school principal sent a message to parents that stated: “As many of you may be aware we have had law enforcement on campus today. All of our students are safe and the school day is progressing as normal.”
Perkins told Fox 11 she was disappointed that the principal didn’t mention that the accusation was false. Now she’s worried Solomon will be bullied or treated differently by those who believe he actually did have a gun. She told Fox 11 that she asked the school to send out a statement saying her son was innocent. The outlet reached out to the school district multiple times but did not hear back.
For their part, the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station issued a statement regarding the incident:
During their investigation, the deputies determined a 7-year-old male student had allegedly made ‘specific threats’ about possibly engaging in a school shooting. The responding deputies made contact with the student and enlisted additional resources to evaluate his emotional and mental wellness. Not only did the deputies have a duty to protect the other children present at the school, but we’re also obligated to ensure the safety of the student involved.
Perkins, however, told Fox 11 she believed her son was treated this way because he is African American.
“I really feel as though African American boys are an endangered species in the United States of America that hurts my heart,” she told the outlet. “Why would she call a sheriff after she looked in his backpack and saw that it was a false accusation? Why?”