A young boy was left with a broken wrist bone after being handcuffed for 23 minutes.
12-year-old Jarome Liason, who was diagnosed with autism, was cuffed by a school resource officer who left him crying and restrained on the floor days after he started at Gen. John Stricker Middle School.
His family slammed the law enforcement officer, saying the child was treated like a ‘criminal.’
The incident occurred after the young boy got into a heated argument with another student.
Jarome was then taken to the office but tried to run away. A staff member then brought him to a ‘focus room’ where he started bumping his head on the wall.
A school employee had to restrain him for two minutes to prevent him from banging his head.
The body cam worn by a school resource officer then showed what happened afterward.
Jarome, who was visibly distressed, swearing, kicking and crying, was handcuffed by the officer and left on the floor restrained for more than 20 minutes, WBALTV reported.
The 12-year-old boy can also be heard complaining about his hands hurting because of the handcuffs.
The following day, Jarome required medical attention for a broken bone in his wrist.
Jarome’s aunt, Gloria Merritt, told WBALTV: “It was terrible. They treated him like a criminal, and he’s only an autistic little boy.”
She added: “’If we go to Walmart or something like that, Jarome stays in the car with my husband because he’s afraid to even walk past a police officer.”
Merritt also said Jarome was sent to the school as they believed it could accommodate his special needs.
“You have to have a behavioral plan for autistic children because they act out in different ways than other children,” she added.
“They could help him as far as his autism, as far as giving him his one-to-one aide and small setting that he needed to be in.”
The family is now considering filing a lawsuit against the school.
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