AUSTIN — “I think that’s ridiculous — it’s such a big charge,” says Latanya Powell, a construction worker who heard of the incident.
“It’s just going overboard. I can see if it were a weapon and harm was done, but it was just a snowball.
“This is a case of kids being kids.”
A 13-yr-old boy was forcefully restrained and charged with a felony of “aggravated assault,” according to reports, for throwing a snowball at an officer.
It took place at George Leland Elementary school, where students were throwing snowballs at each other and building snowmen for fun.
Police decided to charge the boy with “aggravated battery” after his snowball hit the officer’s arm as the officer was parked.
“It’s not fair,” said Mary Grant, one of the neighbors.
“The officer should’ve tried something different than arrest,” she added.
The felony charge is likely to harm the boy’s life as he gets older, hindering his chances to find work and education.
“It’s sad, he’s only 13. I’m so upset, he’s never been in trouble before,” said the boy’s mother.
This incident occurred right as a woman in Austin was arrested and dragged into a police car for jaywalking without an ID, “failing to identify” when commanded by an officer.
Long-held American traditions such as jogging and snowball fights are now seen as a “threat” to officers paralyzed by fear from their “counter-terrorism” training.
RELATED: Young Boy Shot in the Chest and Killed by Cop After Sitting Down to Watch a Movie in His Home
The “felony” charges for throwing a snowball may also bring to mind a previous case in which a cop pulled a gun on teens for throwing snowballs.
The cop arrested the teens and charged them with “attempted assault” and “criminal possession of a weapon” (e.g. a snowball).
This is what America has become.
These incidents will continue as long as low-IQ, fearful authoritarians get permission from the government to roam our neighborhoods and pretend they’re Judge Dredd.
Whatever policing may have been for previous generations, it is now endangering Americans rather than protecting them.
Watch the video of a cop pulling a gun on teens for throwing a snowball.