(ETH) – A 16-year-old boy was arrested last month after refusing to wear a mask at a central Florida high school and his lawyer is calling the incident “government abuse” after the teen was suffering from panic attacks.
According to the report from Fox5, The Winter Springs High School sophomore, whose name was redacted on the Sept. 17 report, was reportedly arrested after he refused to wear a mask and abide by other school rules, which violated a probation order that required him to maintain good behavior in school, the Orlando Sentinel reported.
The family’s attorney stated that the teenager’s prior record didn’t justify what he viewed as an uncalled-for action. “Should they be arresting a 16-year-old child knowing he already has a medical condition?” he said. In an official statement, Rivas’ law firm called the arrest of the young man “government abuse” and added, “We will be seeking just and fair compensation for the illegal arrest … and the harm that this action caused him.”
According to a statement from the boy’s mother her son has an anxiety disorder and was arrested after going to the school office to ask for water because he was feeling panicky and was having trouble breathing in the mask. “I couldn’t grasp it at first. Because of a mask?” the newspaper quoted the mother as saying. “I was just in disbelief.” The Associated Press isn’t identifying the mother to protect the student’s identity.
The report from the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office states that the teen had been given instructions to obey the school rules as a condition of his probation. It did not say what he was on probation for. In the report, it stated that beginning on Sept. 1st the teen refused to obey rules, including wearing a mask and social distancing, and that he received a warning and was also caught vaping in the cafeteria.
Then on Sept. 17th, he was seen not wearing a mask again and refused to put one on. It was then that a deputy arrested him and brought him to a juvenile detention center. According to The sheriff’s office, the arrest was for probation violations, not violations of the school district’s mask rules.
