Schools across the country are getting creative with ways to prevent school shootings and protect their students. But one mistake by an artificial intelligence safety system caused a Black student at a Baltimore high school to be traumatized for life.
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Taki Allen was hanging out with friends outside his school, Kenwood High School, after football practice, WBAL News reported. The teen reportedly finished eating a bag of Doritos chips and put the crumpled up bag in his pocket. Then, the unthinkable happened.
About 20 minutes after finishing his snack, Allen said a group of police officers with guns surrounded him. “It was like eight cop cars that came pulling up for us,” Allen told WBAL. “At first, I didn’t know where they were going until they started walking toward me with guns, talking about, ‘Get on the ground,’ and I was like, ‘What?’”
What Allen didn’t know is the school’s AI system had falsely reported the chip bag in his pocket as a violent weapon. Police were instructed to search the teen and retrieve what they thought was a gun, the outlet also reported.
Since the 1999 Columbine school shooting in Colorado, over 400 school shootings have occurred in the nation. Most recently, a mass shooting at Evergreen High School in September resulted in two students critically injured and another– the shooter– dead, NBC News reported.
Artificial systems like the one manufactured by Omnialert inside Allen’s high school were designed to curve growing concerns over mass shootings. But this time, they got it completely wrong.
“They made me get on my knees, put my hands behind my back and cuffed me,” Allen continued of the officers. “Then, they searched me and they figured out I had nothing.” He added that police showed him a picture of the alleged weapon they were looking for. “I was just holding a Doritos bag — it was two hands and one finger out, and they said it looked like a gun,” he said.
Though he was cleared from any wrongdoing, the teen said the incident has left a permanent mark on him. “I just in that moment, I didn’t feel safe. I didn’t feel like the school actually cared about me. Because nobody came up to me after, not even the principal,” he told FOX 45.
PEOPLE obtained a statement from Kenwood High principal Kate Smith acknowledged how the incident impacted Allen: “We understand how upsetting this was for the individual that was searched as well as the other students who witnessed the incident,” she said. “Our counselors will provide direct support to the students who were involved in this incident and are also available to speak with any student who may need support.”
Baltimore County Public Schools Superintendent Myriam Rogers also called the incident “truly unfortunate” during a (Oct. 23) news conference. “We never want any student, whether it’s during school hours or not, to be in a situation that is frightening,” she added.
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