Deputies Show Up After Boy Holds Toy Gun in Online Class

Isaiah Elliott's parents say he moved it from one side of the couch to the other
By Newser Editors,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 8, 2020 4:06 PM CDT
Boy Suspended for Flashing Toy Gun in Online Class
This is a stock image of a toy gun.   (Getty Images)

The gun was "obviously" fake, reports the Washington Post: with a neon green barrel and bright orange tip and bearing the words "Zombie Hunter" along its side (see it here). But the 12-year-old Colorado boy who played with it during a virtual class is dealing with very real consequences. The incident happened Aug. 27 in Colorado Springs. It was the third day of Grand Mountain School's online school for Isaiah Elliott, and his art teacher reportedly noticed him playing with the gun. The teacher thought the gun was fake but emailed Isaiah's mom Dani, to let her know; Dani replied with confirmation that it was a toy and said she'd speak with her son. But the teacher also alerted vice principal Keri Lindaman, and Dani, who makes clear her frustration with the school so quickly going to the authorities, tells BuzzFeed that Lindaman called her to say school resource officers would be coming to the home to conduct a wellness check on the 7th grader.

The outcome: Isaiah now has a record with the El Paso County Sheriff's Office as well as a mark in his disciplinary file for bringing a "facsimile of a firearm to school." He was also suspended for five days. Isaiah's parents say they have communicated with Lindaman, the principal, and a superintendent but can't get the suspension or disciplinary mark wiped from his record. Dani says she explained to them what a problem that was, saying "Black children cannot have that sort of thing on their record. You are reducing his chances at success." Husband Curtis tells FOX31 the school won't show them the recording of the virtual class, but they did see the recording taken by the sheriff's deputy's bodycam while he watched said video. Curtis says the boy was on the couch and simply moved the gun from one side of his body to the other. It "just flashed across the school computer screen for maybe one or two seconds at the most." They've since pulled Isaiah from the school. (More toy guns stories.)

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