Boy suspended after using finger as pretend gun

Mother fighting for removal of suspension from son's record

HARMONY, Fla. – The mother of an 8-year-old Central Florida boy is fighting back after her son was suspended from school for using his finger as a play gun.

Bonnie Bennett said her son, Jordan, was suspended Friday at Harmony Community School in Osceola County after playing cops and robbers with another student.

"There was nothing in his hand.  He used his thumb and index finger," said Bennett. "It was a game.  He made no threatening advances or threats to harm anyone. No words were said."

Bennett said she would have been satisfied with some form of punishment but is worried now that since he's been suspended, her son will be seen as a violent child.

"They took a child that has never been in trouble before and went to the extreme," said Bennett. "A child that has no history of violence is now classified as a violent offender."

But the Osceola County School District said it wasn't just a simple game.

A school representative said the district can't comment on the specifics of what happened because of confidentiality, but after reviewing the entire incident, Jordan's actions showed to have violated the code of student conduct.

Bennett said she'll continue to fight, hoping the principal will remove the suspension from her son's school record.

"I'm prepared to go to court if I have to because this is wrong. It's wrong for my son and any other child if they're faced with the same thing because of a game," Bennett said.

According to Bennett's son, the other boy involved was also sent home because of the incident.