A town accused of detaining a 3rd grader for several hours after another student told adults she had chemicals in her backpack denied the allegations last week in response to a lawsuit filed by her family.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island sued in U.S. District Court in Providence last month on behalf of the girl and her parents. The family’s lawyer has said the child’s constitutional rights were violated when she was taken off a school bus, searched, put in the back of a police cruiser, taken alone to the police department in Tiverton and questioned, even though it was clear that she was the victim of a false accusation.
The lawsuit says another 3rd grader had falsely reported to adults that the girl and her friend had chemicals in their backpacks. Police found no dangerous chemicals when they searched the child or her friend.
