Student Arrested For Bringing A Homemade Clock to School

Ahmed Muhammad was arrested in Irving, Texas for bringing a homemade clock to school when his teachers thought it was a fake bomb. He had a police escort as he was lead off campus. Ahmed told NBC that he has always been interested in engineering, and he wanted to share the clock he made with his teachers. Unfortunately, at least three of his teachers thought it was a bomb and notified the authorities.

He was pulled out of class and put in a room to be questioned by five police officers. He asked to talk to his parents, but he was told that he couldn't talk with them because he was being interrogated. Ahmed was handcuffed and taken to the juvenile processing area at the police station. The charges against Ahmed were dropped. Ahmed's family has said that he will be transferring schools. He might go to a private school, or be home-schooled.

The community believes one of the reasons this happened is the ever growing Anti-Islamic sentiment that has risen in Irving since the attack on 9/11. This story has attracted a lot of attention from all over the country. President Obama and Hilary Clinton have even made comments about Ahmed's situation. Everyone is outraged with how the school dramatically overreacted. Social media communities have been sharing the hashtags #IStandWithAhmed and #EngineersForAhmed to show their support for Ahmed.

Comments from Allen: A lot of issues are raised in this story: juveniles unable to speak to their parents before being questioned by police, people being charged for possessing something that looks like dangerous contraband, teachers' responsibility to keep their classrooms safe and police officers' responsibility to act upon probable cause that a crime has been committed.

First, a juvenile's inability to speak to his parents before being interrogated. I have had many calls from parents complaining this happened to their child. Is it legal? Yes, it is. Is it wrong? Probably, but police do it because it is legal, and so long as it is legal, they will get more evidence out of a child that is being questioned without a parent present than they will otherwise.

Fake contraband or conduct: There are a number of laws around that ban certain conduct because it causes inordinate fear in others. Assault can be one; with assault, the defendant creates a fear in the victim that he is going to be hit or injured. Brandishing a fake gun or a fake bomb can have the same effect, so there can be criminal sanctions for swinging a baseball bat by someone's head, or pointing a fake gun at someone, or pulling out a fake bomb in a crowd.

Unfortunately for this young man, he chose to bring his invention to school in an era in which there have been mass killings in schools and bombings of innocent people by Muslims, and bombs are frequently depicted as being attached to clocks. It is standard operating procedure for police, when a bomb threat is called in, to act immediately to prevent harm, and then determine whether a crime has, indeed, occurred.

I don't fault the teachers for calling police when they saw what appeared to be a bomb in the school. I don't fault the police for questioning the boy or examining his bizarre-looking clock, or for seizing the clock to determine whether it was, in fact, a bomb with a timer. They had a duty to investigate and prevent harm. The fault appears in charging this kid with a crime after this investigation, when it should have been apparent the boy was not threatening anyone with his clock. I also fault the school for keeping the kid suspended after it had been determined he did nothing wrong.

UPDATE:  This entire episode appears to be a setup by the boy's father, who has in the past been referred to as the "Dallas Imam," and who refers to himself as a sheik.  The dad, Mohamed Elhassan Mohamed, is a Sudanese national who immigrated to the U.S. in the 1980's, and who owns a computer tech shop in Irving, Texas, among other businesses.  He has since returned to Sudan twice to run for president.  He wants the U.S. to lift its embargo against Sudan.  He also is known for having been the person who stepped forward to defend the Quran in 2012 when Rev. Terry Jones put the Quran on trial in Gainesville, Florida, and then burned a copy of one.

The kid even stated, in a video interview, that he knew bringing a briefcase with a clock in it might look suspicious, but he did it anyway.

The episode gained him sympathy from the general public and an engineers group, President Obama, M.I.T., and Mark Zuckerberg, among others.

Frankly, as the boy's dad is an Islamic computer guy who wants to be known for defending the Quran, I find too coincidental that all this was an accident.  This appears to be a publicity stunt to shame police and schools and to make Muslims appear to be victims of prejudice and hatred.  And that is shameful.

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Allen Browning is an attorney in Idaho Falls, Idaho who handles personal injury and criminal defense. He has over 30 years of experience and handled thousands of cases. Allen handles cases from all over Idaho. Call (208) 542-2700 to set up a free consultation if you are facing legal trouble or you have been involved in an accident.

Also, check out browninglaw.net for more information about Allen and Browning Law.

Allen Browning can help with all personal injury claims including motor vehicle accidents,truck accidents, auto accidents, serious and disabling accidents, and wrongful death claims.

Allen Browning is an Idaho Falls attorney who can also help with drunk driving (DUI), traffic violations, Felony, Misdemeanor, Domestic Violence, Drug Crimes, Theft, Juvenile Crimes, battery and assault charges, Violent Crimes, and Probation/Parole Violations. He is one of the most experienced and successful criminal defense attorneys in Idaho.
Allen is able to provide his services if the incident occurs in the following Idaho Areas: American Falls, Arco, Blackfoot, Boise, Burley, Driggs, Idaho Falls, Malad City, Pocatello, Rexburg, Rigby, Salmon, St. Anthony, Twin Falls, Bannock County, Bingham County, Bonneville County, Butte County, Cassia County, Clark County, Fremont County, Jefferson County, Lemhi County, Madison County, Oneida County, Power County, Teton County, and Twin Falls County.    
Sources for more information:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/09/18/dad-ahmed-mohamed-wont-returning-public-high-school/72380158/

http://www.buzzfeed.com/husseinkesvani/people-are-taking-pictures-of-themselves-with-clocks-to-show#.ml1GG5o0W

http://www.buzzfeed.com/salvadorhernandez/ahmed-mohameds-homemade-clock-arrest-shocked-a-nation-but-no#.faNMMrPdJ

http://www.buzzfeed.com/stephaniemcneal/teen-arrested-for-bringing-a-homemade-clock-to-school-now-ha#.pho77KmVa

http://www.buzzfeed.com/leticiamiranda/photo-of-arrested-macarthur-student#.vvnRR5kW4

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/09/17/us/texas-student-ahmed-muslim-clock-bomb/index.html

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