Current:Home > Stocks'Error in judgement:' Mississippi police apologize for detaining 10-year-old -InvestPro
'Error in judgement:' Mississippi police apologize for detaining 10-year-old
View
Date:2025-04-21 11:06:50
Mississippi police who detained a 10-year-old boy for public urination are apologizing for the incident and calling it an "error in judgement."
The boy’s mother, Latonya Eason, tells WHBQ-TV that she was at an attorney's office in Senatobia, just south of Memphis, when a police officer came in and told her that he caught her son urinating behind her car outside.
Eason said she asked her son Quantavious why he would to that, and he responded by saying that his sister told him there wasn't a bathroom inside. She told him that he knows better and should have asked her if there was a bathroom.
That's when the officer told her: "Since you handled it like a mom, then he can just get back in the car," she told the station, adding that the officer said he was going to give Quantavious a court referral.
Eason thought the matter was resolved but then more police officers pulled up, and things took a turn for the worse.
'Speechless'
When more police arrived, Eason said a lieutenant told the family that the boy had to go to jail for urinating in public.
"I'm just speechless right now. Why would you arrest a 10-year-old kid?" she told the station. “For one officer to tell my baby to get back in the car, it was OK — and to have the other pull up and take him to jail. Like, no."
The whole thing had the boy shaken up, he told the station.
"I get scared and start shaking and thinking I am going to jail," he said.
A photo posted to social media shows the boy sitting in the back of a patrol car.
"I started crying a little bit," he said. "They took me down there and got me out of the truck. I didn't know what was happening."
He said he was held in a jail cell before being turned back over to his mother.
"That could really traumatize my baby," Eason said. "My baby could get to the point where he won't want to have an encounter with the police period."
Michigan:Michigan police chief, mayor apologize after arrest video of 12-year-old boy goes viral
Pranks:11-year-old Florida girl arrested after falsely reporting kidnapping as a prank, officials say
'Error in judgement'
Senatobia Police Chief Richard Chandler issued a statement once word got out about the case and cited the state's Youth Court Act, which he said allows officers to file referrals against children as young as 7 years old if they are “in need of supervision" or 10 years old "if they commit acts that would be illegal for an adult."
In this case, Chandler said an officer saw Quantavious urinating in public, which is illegal for an adult.
"The officer did not observe a parent on the scene during the initial contact," he said, adding that Eason was found shortly after. "The officers then transported the 10-year-old to the police station to complete the paperwork where the child was released to the mother. The child was not handcuffed during this incident."
He continued: “It was an error in judgement for us to transport the child to the police station since the mother was present at that time as a reasonable alternative.”
Chandler said that "mistakes like this" are a reminder that continuous training is needed for officers.
Neither Eason nor the Senatobia Police Department immediately responded to USA TODAY for requests for further comment Wednesday.
veryGood! (15876)
Related
- Sonya Massey's father decries possible release of former deputy charged with her death
- Ellen Ochoa's Extraordinary NASA Career
- RHONJ's Melissa Gorga Accuses Luis Ruelas of Manipulating Teresa Giudice
- TikToker Dylan Mulvaney Reveals What She's Looking for in a Romantic Partner
- Google unveils a quantum chip. Could it help unlock the universe's deepest secrets?
- Sick elephant dies at Pakistani zoo days after critical medical procedure
- Panamanian tribe to be relocated from coastal island due to climate change: There's no other option
- Military officer and 6 suspected gunmen killed in Mexico shootout
- Could your smelly farts help science?
- The James Webb telescope reaches its final destination in space, a million miles away
Ranking
- Tarte Shape Tape Concealer Sells Once Every 4 Seconds: Get 50% Off Before It's Gone
- Tonga's internet is restored 5 weeks after big volcanic eruption
- Wicked Has a New Release Date—And Its Sooner Than You Might Think
- Mexico finds tons of liquid meth in tequila bottles at port
- Justice Department, Louisville reach deal after probe prompted by Breonna Taylor killing
- Free People's Daisy Jones & The Six Collection Is Here With the Cutest Vintage-Inspired Looks
- Elizabeth Holmes spent 7 days defending herself against fraud. Will the jury buy it?
- 1 American dead in Sudan as U.S. readies troops for potential embassy evacuation amid heavy fighting
Recommendation
The Super Bowl could end in a 'three
FAA toughens oversight of Boeing's 787 Dreamliner
Kicked off Facebook and Twitter, far-right groups lose online clout
Olivia Jade Shares the Biggest Lesson She Learned After College Admissions Scandal
Trump suggestion that Egypt, Jordan absorb Palestinians from Gaza draws rejections, confusion
Former billionaire to auction world's biggest rhino farm after spending his fortune to save the animals
Fire in Beijing hospital kills at least 21, forces dozens to escape from windows
Mexico finds tons of liquid meth in tequila bottles at port