GASTON COUNTY, N.C.,None — A mother says a school official forced her son to take off some of his clothes and searched him behind closed doors.
Debra asked Eyewitness News not to use her last name, saying her 12-year-old son has already been embarrassed enough this week.
She said his school, Cramerton Middle in Gaston County received a tip that he had a knife.
She said the assistant principal took the boy into his office, closed the door, searched him with a wand device, made him empty his pockets and made him take off some of his clothes -- including his pants.
He had shorts underneath, she said.
"He said, 'Well, pull your pants down,' so he had to pull them probably to his knees and he said, 'Empty your pockets on your gym shorts.' Then he proceeded to pat the front of his pockets. And, then, he had open hands, but he proceeded to pat him on his bottom," Debra said.
School officials did not find a knife.
Debra said she is upset because the school never contacted her about the search or the tips about weapons that concerned her son.
Debra called police, but officers said she did not accuse anyone of a crime, so there is nothing for them to investigate.
Gaston County's policy about searching students states that when school officials pat down a student, they should have an extra adult in the room watching "when feasible."
It also states in "extreme" cases, an "adult witness" must be present and that the superintendent or someone similar must approve it ahead of time.
In this case, the school district's spokesperson Bonnie Reidy said the school got three tips that Debra's son had a weapon, that the assistant principal left his office door open and that the principal's door was also open and she could see in the room.
Debra said she is considering hiring a lawyer and trying to get her son into a different school.