BATON ROUGE – Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry is getting involved in the case of a fourth grade student suspended for handling a BB gun during a virtual class.
Nine-year-old Woodmere Elementary student Ka Mauri Harrison was in his bedroom taking a Social Studies test virtually on the afternoon of September 11 when he picked up a BB gun and placed it on the seat next to him, according to an attorney for the family.
Harrison was then suspended for six days, a punishment Dillard University president Walter Kimbrough said should be voided. Landry agrees.
“I am alarmed by what appears to not only be multiple violations of both the State and Federal Constitutions, but also blatant government overreach by the school system,” Landry said. “I have begun investigating this matter and plan to take action in defense of this young man and his family and all families who could suffer the same invasion of their homes and constitutional rights.”
Landry backed up the argument of attorney Chelsea Brener Cusimano, who said the ordinance Jefferson Parish School officials used to punish Harrison shouldn’t be applied to a virtual learning session.
“For anyone to conclude that a student’s home is now school property because of connectivity through video conferencing is absurd,” Landry said. “It is ludicrous for this All-American kid to be punished for taking responsible actions just as it is for his parents to be accused of neglect. The School and the School Board have deprived Ka Mauri of six days of educational instruction, and that is just the start of the damage done to him and his family. My office and I will take a deep dive into all the irreparable harm caused by this egregious incident and take appropriate actions.”
Officials from the school district have declined to comment on the case.