An autistic Black boy in Virginia was handcuffed on the bottom throughout an after-school tennis program run by the native police division.
Shelia Jackson instructed 6 News Richmond that she signed up her son, who was not publicly named, into an athletics program run by officers from the Richmond Police Department in an effort to have her son really feel extra comfy round cops.
Mother Arrives To Police-Run Tennis Lessons To Find Autistic Black Son Handcuffed On The Ground
Instead, she says she arrived to search out her son surrounded by officers as he was handcuffed and on the bottom.
“I wanted him to have a positive view of police officers and not all the negativity he sees on TV,” Shelia Jackson instructed 6 News Richmond.
Jackson went on to say she signed him up for him for the after-school tennis program at Virginia Commonwealth University, the place officers from the Richmond Police Department volunteer by means of the Richmond Police Athletic League, in keeping with the outlet.
But on Nov. 3, Jackson arrived to choose up her son to search out the surprising scene because it unfolded.
Cops in Virginia handcuffed a 12-year-old with autism and gave him a concussion at an after-school tennis program. Sheila Jackson says her son is aware of find out how to stroll away from conditions and self-regulate, however when a cop raised their voice at him and he walked away, they detained him. pic.twitter.com/DXVNsF7Wla
— Fifty Shades of Whey (@davenewworld_2) December 31, 2022
“We ended up going to VCU emergency room. They diagnosed him with a TBI concussion,” Jackson mentioned.
Staff Attempts To Explain Away Incident, But Leave More Questions Than Answers
Jackson added that workers on the tennis program had been getting pissed off on his serves, prompting them to inform him to observe off the the facet of the courts. What occurs subsequent stays unclear, she’s says.
She did say her son instructed her one of many law enforcement officials started to yell at him, and he walked away from her in response.
“He knows to try to self-regulate and walk away from a situation, she may have thought he was being defiant,” Jackson mentioned.
It’s not instantly clear if the officers concerned within the incident had been conscious of the boy’s autism, however what is obvious is the the state of affairs escalated to the purpose of her son being handcuffed.
“When I got here my son was handcuffed on the ground right behind where that fence is opened,” Jackson mentioned. “There was an officer holding his head, there was an officer on his left leg, someone on his right leg, there was an officer on his right side kneeling holding his shoulders down and then there was another officer standing up.”
Police Department Say Boy Head-Butted Officer As They Restrained Him, But Failed To Say Why He Was Restrained
Jackson says the police division instructed her that her son head-butted an officer as they tried to restrain him, however didn’t clarify why he was retrained within the first place.
“That is not how he should be dealt with, not only my son, anyone,” she mentioned. “Where is the training? Are you just going to the training and you’re not taking it in?”
Her son in the end ended up with a concussion, and he or she nonetheless has no thought what prompted the incident and the way he was precisely injured.
The mom instructed the outlet that she has tried to hunt solutions quite a few occasions from the Richmond Police Department, however has but to get a solution to her questions.
She even paid $5 for a duplicate of the police report, nonetheless it didn’t have an incident description, in keeping with 6 News Richmond.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Richmond Police Department mentioned they’re now conducting an inside investigation, and added they may not present any extra particulars at the moment.
WOW. Why did Richmond (VA) officers handcuff an autistic 12-yo Black baby throughout an after-school athletics program? His mom signed him up hoping to foster a optimistic relationship with police who had been volunteering. Unfortunately, an incident left him with a TBI concussion!
— Ben Crump (@AttorneyCrump) January 4, 2023
Investigation Into The Incident Ongoing Department Says, While Boy Continues To Deal With Trauma
That investigation is ongoing.
Jackson says her son is has since been coping with trauma from the incident, having gone from receiving prime grades in his center faculty class to struggling simply to make it by means of the college day, the outlet reviews.
“As soon as the concussion it’s like bam bam bam. I’m like ‘oh my gosh’ it’s something every day,” Jackson mentioned.
Jackson’s son was not arrested, however questions over his therapy stay unanswered.
VCU Police mentioned they responded to a disturbance name involving a juvenile and Richmond Police. However after they arrived, neither the juvenile nor their mother or father was on the scene.