
*An 11-year-old girl was mistakenly handcuffed by deputies in Syracuse, New York, who believed she matched the description of a car theft suspect.
The incident occurred while the girl was walking home from school with friends, and cell phone footage captured the emotional encounter, TooFab reports. The deputies insisted the girl resembled the suspect and dismissed her friends’ objections, even as they explained she couldn’t drive and was a student at Brighton Academy. A female deputy noted that the child was wearing the “exact same thing” the suspect was wearing: “pink jacket [and] camo pants.”
“She can’t drive,” one of the friends said, to which the female deputy replied, “What do you mean? Most kids can’t drive and they’re still out here stealing cars!”
The officer claimed that there are “12-year-olds driving those Kias and Hyundais.” The female deputy showed the the handcuffed girl a photo of the car thief and said, “Girl, you’re going to tell me this ain’t you?”

Seeing the photo, the friends argued that the handcuffed girl was not the suspect. The 11-year-old broke down in tears when another deputy said he was taking her to his car.
“You’re going to lie and tell me that’s not you?” a deputy can be heard saying in the footage.
Despite repeated claims of innocence and visible distress, the deputies continued questioning her for nearly six minutes before releasing her after realizing they had detained the wrong person.
“She no longer wants to walk to and from school anymore. That was the only freedom she had, and it’s now gone,” the child’s mother said.
“I can’t make sense of it. I couldn’t even finish watching the video,” she continued. “Even if it wasn’t my child, I wouldn’t be able to finish watching the video because that’s not how you handle children.”
The Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office explained in a news release why they detained a child.
“Why would we handcuff this child? Detainees are usually handcuffed initially. Detainees may become uncooperative, may decide to flee, or may decide to fight,” the statement read. “In some cases, detainees may be armed or have contraband/ evidence they will try to destroy. Handcuffing from the start usually prevents a controlled situation from devolving into an uncontrolled situation; ultimately preventing altercations, force, and potential for injury.”
“The police do not definitively know a person’s age and ascertaining that information is part of the detainment process,” the release added. “Handcuffing juveniles in this circumstance is lawful, within policy, and common practice in law enforcement.”
Watch the video of the child’s detainment above.
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