Chattanooga Preparatory School finalized a federal settlement Tuesday with the family of an 11-year-old boy with autism who was arrested and expelled from school under Tennessee’s zero-tolerance policy for threats of mass violence.
Chief U.S. District Judge Travis R. McDonough said he had every intention of approving the $100,000 payout, but it may take a few days to finalize the necessary paperwork.
The school agreed to implement threats of mass violence training, too. It will include definitions of mass violence, context awareness of language and consideration of students with disabilities, the settlement said.
In January, the child and his mother (identified as John Doe and Mary Doe in their lawsuit) brought the allegations after he answered “yeah” when he overheard one student ask another whether the student was going to “blow up the school,” the settlement said.
The 11-year-old has intellectual and emotional impairments, and his answer was limited by his social awareness and disability, the settlement said.
“No one actually heard Doe utter the words, ‘shoot up,'” the lawsuit said.
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Other children allegedly told a teacher that John Doe said he was going to blow up the school, which was not true.
The family’s lawsuit was one of several filed across Tennessee since a 2024 law changed the offense of threatening mass violence on a school from a misdemeanor to a felony.
According to state code, mass violence is any act that a reasonable person would conclude could lead to serious injury or the death of at least two people. A person who recklessly, by any means of communication, threatens to commit an act of mass violence on school property or at school-related activities commits a felony.
The principal, who was aware of this law, was unsure of what to do, the settlement said. The principal reported the situation to the school’s student resource officer.
The boy was later tracked down to a local restaurant, arrested and taken to juvenile detention.
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Chatt Prep attorney Caitlin Burchette said she’s seen others having issues with the law in many school districts.
And the boy’s family attorney, Justin Gilbert, added the difficulty with the law stems from young students who pop off or say something in jest even though they would never carry out an actual act of mass violence.
“I’ll be the first to acknowledge this is a very challenging law to apply,” Gilbert said.
For imminent threats such as an active shooter, a school and resource officers must act immediately, the settlement said.
But in other situations, a threat assessment team should consider the validity of a threat.
The boy’s mother said she was very thankful Chatt Prep is offering training as part of the settlement to avoid similar situations in the future. She intends to invest the $100,000 settlement on her son’s behalf and get him a dog, which he’s been wanting for some time.
He has since been allowed to return to Chatt Prep.
Contact Sofia Saric at ssaric@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6476.