A 7 - year old boy handcuffed in station from a school fight, is that necessary?

That is totally ridiculous to be handcuffing a seven year old. I would definitely be suing the NYPD too. How many times when I was growing up that I witnessed a fight during lunch. I never saw the police get involved. The teachers broke it up and took care of it by calling the parents. Why on earth were the police called into it. I can't imagine what the boy is thinking and how this will effect him later in life. He will not forget being handcuffed, intimidated or manhandled by the police. Then we wonder why so many people don't have respect for the police.

I was a principal in a building that had grades K-12. We had one boy who was about 8 years old and when he got out of control it took 2-3 adults to subdue him. We had a room for in-school suspension with carpeting on the walls and plexiglass windows so an adult could view the student all the time. What usually happened was the student was placed in there until he calmed down then a teacher would go in and talk to him. There was an adult at the door and kept a 3 min log of what was going on and how he was acting (required by state law). The room was 8 feet by 4 feet, again by state standards and the adult would sit in front of the door. More than once this boy would fling himself with such force at the door the adult would be knocked off the chair. We had staff trained in restraining the child but they could only take about 15 to 20 minutes of restraining (designed so that he could not hurt himself or others) him before they need to be replaced. Parents were called but often would not show up. He was too violent for a group home placement or even a residential treatment center but by Federal Law the public schools had to take him. Court rulings and Federal Regulations say that a special needs child can only be suspended from school a total of 10 days and then there are a lot of meetings and paper work to change the program. However if the police are called and they take the child it does not count as a suspension. What you are hearing is the mothers side of the story, because the Police and schools are not allowed to talk about the case. As to handcuffing him that is standard Police procedure. My feelings is this is not the first time this boy has been in trouble and he is probably a Special Needs student for Behavior Problems and he and his mother probably have a history with the police with the mother calling them to help control him when he goes wild at home. Having worked with a wide range of students I understand that the police will handcuff every person they have to transport. I have seen police officers kicked, spat at and clawed because they tried to be nice to the student and try to talk them into calming down never once has the person been charged by the DA for a student assault on a Police Officer. Even with adults the first charged dropped is assaulting a police officer followed by resisting arrest. Police did the right thing by handcuffing this student.

Rightly or wrongly their actions could actually be seen as 'child abuse' seriously, I am not sure about the laws in the USA but to handcuff a 7 year old? I am sure the lawyers would have a thrill day taking the case. Personally I think that is totally disgraceful and should have serious implications for the NYD.

Turning the child into a criminal. The teachers could have separated the boys, either put them into detention, made them do some work, or called their parents. It was not necessary to handcuff the boy. It was not as if he were fifteen or so and quite strong. I would not think every nicely of the police. After all, those big strong men are so afraid of a little boy that they have to use handcuffs.

How about the other boy? Why is it that he was the only one being brought to the Police Dept.? Besides, this boy is still very little and he is not supposed to be handcuffed. That policeman should be punished. The boy's parents are right, they should sue the policemen who did that to their son.

I do not think the 7 year should have been handcuffed. Or any 7 year old for that matter. The station/precinct houses in NYC here are large enough where he could have been placed in a room far enough from the doors of the front of the building where IF and only IF he tried to run away than they would have seen him and hopefully stopped him before he hit the doors. But I do believe, based upon the details that have been released in the press that the arrest or even just a detainment is or was in order. From what I understand he has a history of poor behavior and excessive bullying etc. Others had intervened but to no avail. So yes, the young man does need to see the consequences (yes albeit extreme) of his actions, but handcuffing him and "rough housing" him are completely out of line.

If that is true, I don't agree with it. He is way too little to be handcuffed and if I was his parents I'd be pi$$ed off. I mean, what is a seven year old boy going to do...he can't even outrun them, come on. You'll have to see if there is any more to this story.

I have not heard about this happening. I can not believe they did that to a 7 year old boy. I can not blame the parents going to sue NYPD.

From what you said here I think that is ridiculous to handcuff a little boy like that! I don't blame the parents for suing the police department either. No young child should be treated that way, they are CHILDREN! The parents should have been told to take care of it and if they felt that strongly about what happened then the boy should have gotten in trouble from the school...But the police?!? NO!

I don't think it's necessary unless he is going to hurt himself then yes I would have done that. But I don't think a 7 year old would be that much of a threat.

That is crazy,how can a policeman put a handcuff on a 7-year old boy?Kids in that age do not know what is good and what is bad,and actually I think that behaviour was violated the human right,at least violated the protection law for kids.

He's just 7?? What kind of policeman is someone who can't even restrain a kid?

It was a standard operating procedure for the Officer for the handcuffed. But the other one should had been handcuffed too. However if the one who is handcuffed is the aggressor then that was the reason maybe specially if he was resisting arrest. It is a temporary action to immediately pacify the commotion