OSHKOSH (NBC 26) — The family of the student arrested at Vel Phillips Middle School in January admits he was breaking the rules, but they believe the way he was dealt with was extreme and unnecessary.
- A student was arrested at Vel Phillips Middle School in January.
- OPD says the student threatened a police officer and resisted arrest.
- The dispute began after the student refused to give up his cell phone and walked away from teachers.
Lawrence Anderson is an eighth grader at Vel Phillips Middle School. He plays basketball, football and track.
Watch: Oshkosh family speaks out after 13-year-old's arrest at middle school:
"My son is smart, he loves math," Vikky, Lawrence's mom, says. "He's very outspoken, very talkative... I love everything about him."
On Friday, Jan. 10, Lawrence says a teacher asked him to give up his phone.
"I said, 'I just got it, so no'," Lawrence says. "I walked away and she called the dean and the police officer came too."
Oshkosh Area School District Board Policy says Middle School students are only allowed to use their phones before and after school.
Vikky says Lawrence has gotten in trouble for being on his phone in the past.
The Oshkosh Police Department report says Lawrence was asked to either go to student services or leave the school. The report says Lawrence continued to walk away from staff.
In OPD body camera footage, Dean of students, Christopher Willems, is seen physically pushing Lawrence towards student services.
Lawrence says he was walking around the school because he wanted to grab his belongings before leaving, but couldn't find them.
“Eventually it led up to the part where he pushed me, I said 'Stop touching me,' he put his hand on my neck and then pushed me down," Lawrence says. "And that’s when, yeah, I got on the ground and he put his knee in my back... I was mainly crying and stuff because I didn’t think I was going to get arrested with the handcuffs and everything.”
OPD says in its report "Lawrence was referred for the threats he made to the law enforcement officers saying he would "beat my a**" and for resisting arrest."
"I didn’t say anything like that... I was mainly just cussing and telling him to stop touching me," Lawrence says.
The report also says at one point "Lawrence quickly spun around in an aggressive manor, clenching his fists and telling staff 'Don't f***ing touch me' At the same time, he balled up his fist and got in a pre-attack position."
According to the report and OPD body camera footage, two other officers arrive, search Lawrence and place him in the squad car.
OPD says in the report while Lawrence was still at the school, "Willems stated he was calling his mother to advise her what was happening."
Vikky says she first heard of the incident after OPD left a voicemail on her phone.
"It was an officer saying hey we got your son in custody can you come pick him up," she says. “He’s telling me like 'yeah, the dean was pushing me and they had me down on my back and handcuffing me,' and I'm like what? over a phone?”
That evening, Vikky says the Vel Phillips assistant principal called her that night to apologize.
In a statement to NBC26, OASD says:
“To protect privacy rights, the district is unable to comment on personnel matters or situations involving individual students. We can affirm that the safety and well-being of our students remains our highest priority. Our district follows established policies, processes, and procedures for investigating and addressing any concerns that arise within our schools. Specific to this situation, OASD administrators conducted an internal investigation and as a result, the involved staff member is on administrative leave.”
The following week, OPD showed Vikky the body camera footage.
“It's very hard to watch,” she says. “I never thought that it would happen to my child, my kid, my baby. I was like, is this really serious? Like my son is 13 years old, like what are we doing here? Is this the protocol? I was enraged.”
Vikky showed NBC26 a letter from the Winnebago County Juvenile Intake Office that said the charges have been dropped. The letter reads, “A decision has been made in the intake office to recommend to the prosecutor that the case be closed. Situation managed at the school level.”
OPD says they are not investigating the SRO and they remain assigned to Vel Phillips.
“I just feel worried that he’s still able to be there and work around my son,” she says. “It's a reason why my son doesn’t want to go to school, and he used to love to go to school.”
OPD and OASD did not respond to request for further comment on this incident.
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