BALDWIN — A Northern Michigan family is at odds with their school district after their third-grade daughter was put in handcuffs during a mental health episode.
The incident happened at Baldwin Community Schools at the elementary school this past Monday.
The 9-year-old had a disagreement with staff that escalated to the point where the school resource officer was called in, officials said.
The parents of the third-grader, Chris and Heather Miller, acknowledged their daughter has behavioral issues, as she has been diagnosed with ADHD and ODD, oppositional defiance disorder.
But they say after reviewing the body cam from the resource officer, the school and officer mishandled the situation, escalating things even more.
“She’s got issues. Yeah, we’ve had plenty of problems in the past. I feel like by that time they handcuffed her, the seriousness of it was already over and that was uncalled for.”
Chris Miller said after watching the footage they were angry at what they saw. They believe their daughter was bullied by adults and made the situation worse.
“She lost it and grabbed a pad of paper. I noticed, because when she threw it, it flopped. I don’t know if it hit anybody or what, but that’s when they put the handcuffs on her,” said Chris.
They say their daughter threw the item after being berated by a group of adults as she was sitting in a chair trying to de-escalate and calm down.
“She has a hard time regulating her emotions. So, when she gets upset, you know, it’s give her space. Whether that’s giving her space or keeping her in a safe place where she can’t harm herself or others. That’s all part of her plan,” said Chris.
The district refused our request for an on-camera interview, instead giving us the statement they had posted on social media.
In part, it said a third-grade student became aggressive and uncooperative, forcing staff to remove all the other students from the classroom.
The school said the student then began flipping desks, throwing chairs, scissors and other items at staff.
After several attempts to de-escalate the situation, a Lake County Sheriff’s Department school resource officer was called and placed the child in handcuffs as a restraint.
“We were called in as a last resort. So, all staff members did what their protocols stated that they had to do. And there was a long period of time that [we were] negotiating and talking to trying to get the child to calm down,” said Sheriff Rich Martin.
Martin said the resource officers are trained to deal with situations like this, but the Millers said they think there needs to be more training so no other kids are traumatized.
“What I hope to accomplish is for them to put new policies in place to protect these students. they should have a special ed room with teachers that are trained to have these children with big emotions,” said Heather.
The Millers have pulled their student from the district.
The sheriff’s office is considering releasing the body cam video in its entirety.