Cops Question Boy With Toy Money, Mom Raises Racial Bias

BETHESDA, MD — A Chevy Chase mother is raising alarms about racial discrimination in Montgomery County after authorities questioned her 10-year-old son because he played with toy money on the school bus.

The boy's mother, Tiffany Kelly, created a Change.org petition after learning that Montgomery County Police and the U.S. Secret Service came to his school to interrogate him.

According to Kelly, her son brought toy money that was purchased from Amazon to school on May 14. The 10-year-old, who has disabilities, distributed the play money to his peers on the bus in an effort to socialize with them.

"He is excited about money and learning to count 'his money.' In an attempt for socialization, something he struggles with, he passed it out on the school bus to his peers," Kelly said. "The money has bright pink Asian symbols on the front and back, along with dotted lines, so that it can be distinguished as play money."

Later that day, one of the bills was found at a bus depot. And once someone reviewed the bus video footage, the police were contacted. Kelly says Montgomery County Police came to the school to question her son and contacted the Secret Service for assistance.

A school system spokeswoman confirmed to Bethesda Beat that it was a school employee who called the police.

"I have confirmed that we are to call the police if there is suspicion and/or evidence of a student trying to use counterfeit money to purchase something. But that wasn't the case here and the police should not have been called," the spokeswoman said in a statement.

Kelly says she didn't know her son was being questioned by police until the end of the school day.

"No one called me. No one let me know what was going on with my son. I was completely disregarded as my son's parent," Kelly said. "Someone please help me understand why my child with disabilities is being questioned without me knowing or present?"

Kelly and her son recently moved from central Florida to Montgomery County. She said that she was anxious about moving to the area because of her race.

"Moving to Montgomery County, specifically Chevy Chase, was scary for me," Kelly said. "It is an area that is not very diverse, and my greatest fear was policing of my son. My nightmare has come true."

Kelly is slamming the school system and police for handling the situation in the manner in which they did.

"Kids play with fake money. It's even used as an educational tool. Montgomery County Public Schools and Montgomery County PD, you must not allow this to happen again," Kelly said.

Through her Change.org petition, she is also raising alarms about racial discrimination in Montgomery County.

"You are contributing to the over-policing of minority children," Kelly said, referring to the school system and police department. "All children do the same things, but non-white children are subject to harsher disciplinary measures. It can't be possible that he's being targeted because of his disabilities, could it? We know policing in this country looks different for those that are suffering with mental illness, a disability, or is a person of color. Which target was it here?

"Boys can be boys; unless you are non-white. Then, the rules change," Kelly continued. "You should have called his very involved, very aware mother, not the police. The climate in this country has mothers and fathers afraid for their children's very lives. This should never have happened."

Kelly signed off on the petition saying: "Montgomery County prides itself on its work on racial equity. It looks like it's just lip service."