This incident has caused a Baltimore County family outrage and now they raised concerns over privacy and safety in the era of online learning.
A Baltimore County family is warning other parents after they say police were called to their house over something that happened during a virtual school lesson.
Courtney Lancaster, a Navy veteran is no stranger to firearms and recently she has passed down her knowledge of gun safety to her children and then one day, this US Navy veteran was shocked opening an unexpected visitor knocking on her home.
WBFF Reported:
Lancaster answered a knock at the door to find that the teacher had called the police on her, reporting that she had weapons in her home around her child. The mother agreed to allow the officers to search her home without a warrant in order to clear up the misunderstanding, showing them that the “weapon” in question was her son’s unloaded BB gun.
She was so confused on why the police are knocking on her door without any prior notice then she was informed that a local school principal have called the police for alleged child endangerment.
Lancaster wrote on Facebook:
“While my son was on a zoom call, a ‘concerned parent’ and subsequently two teachers saw his properly stowed and mounted RED RIDER BB GUN and one other BB gun in the background, He was not holding them, and never intentionally showed them on video. In fact, he was oblivious that they could even be seen in the background. From the angle in which he was on video, it was not even evident which room of MY HOME he was in. So Principal Jason Feiler decided it best to call the police to have my home searched for dangerous weapons.”
“The officers that responded were appalled at the call and even commended the setup that my son has for his TOYS and commended him also on his respect and understanding of the BB guns! He is a boy scout. He is an outdoors/all-boy kind of kid and as his parents and by way of legal rights, he is allowed to own said guns,” she continued.
“The Principal and his teacher cited that ‘just as he cannot BRING guns to school, he cannot BRING them to virtual meetings as well and this is in the handbook.’ After a close review of the handbook, it DOES NOT ADDRESS ANYTHING REGARDING VIRTUAL LEARNING!” Lancaster wrote.
This is so bizarre and clearly, the school had violated her privacy right of capturing a picture inside the Navy veteran’s home that has completely made her feel livid towards the school.
She said, “It’s absolutely scary to think about, Who is on these calls? Who do we have viewing your children and subsequently taking these screenshots that can be sent anywhere or used for any purpose?”
“So, what are the parameters? Where are the lines drawn? If my son is sitting at the kitchen island next to a butcher block, does that constitute a weapon? It’s not allowed at school, right? So, would my home then be searched because he’s sitting next to a butcher block, I feel like parents need to be made aware of what the implications are, what the expectations are.” She added.
Until this writing, the school has not commented about the issue but only stated that the safety of students and staff is their top priority. Then screen capturing and saving it away from the owner is protection? Odd.
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