10-Year-Old Boy Suspended For Making Imaginary Finger Gun

A 10-year-old boy’s “finger gun” got him suspended from Stacy Middle School in Milford, Massachusetts on Friday. Nickolas Taylor used his fingers and a hand to make an imaginary ray gun and voiced “laser sounds” with his mouth near two little girls in his class. The female students told elementary school officials that they “felt threatened” by Taylor and his imaginary laser ray finger gun.

Stacy Middle School Assistant Principal Noah Collins wrote Nickolas Taylor a conduct slip detailing his “threatening” actions. The fifth grade boy was ultimately suspended from school for two days.

“I think this is very slanderous toward Nickolas and his character. It was non-threatening. He’s just a typical boy with an imagination,” Brian Taylor, the boy’s father told the Milford Daily News.

The 10-year-old boy’s father added that the Massachusetts school’s two-day suspension constitutes an abuse of the rules and a “complete disconnect” between Stacy Middle School policy and reality. Brian Taylor has decided to withdraw Nickolas from public school and begin homeschooling his son. The father also said that his son is confused about the two-day school suspension, and does not realize that he did anything wrong.

District superintendent Robert Tremblay revealed the school’s position on the matter, noting that Taylor was dealt with severely because the other children said they felt threatened by the imaginary finger gun and laser ray sounds.

“It’s the difference between intent of the action and what the person feels receiving it. It’s just the same way you can’t yell fire in a crowded movie theater. There are things you can and can’t do,” Tremblay said.

Nickolas Taylor was previously diagnosed with ADHD and was reportedly disciplined in the past when hyperactivity made it hard for him to focus.

“It’s almost as if society has forced us into behaving a certain way and unfortunately, we’re the victims of circumstance,” the Massachusetts school district superintendent told the Milford Daily News when noting that there is room for the school to be “not so caught up in the handbook.”

The school official claims that, after school shootings like Columbine, administrators now have to take extra steps when faced with any threat of school violence. Tremblay added that even simple physical gestures like making an imaginary ray gun in the school cafeteria cannot be taken lightly any longer.

What do you think about the 10-year-old boy being suspended for making an imaginary finger gun?