An 11-year-old girl from Syracuse, New York, was left scared and confused after police mistakenly handcuffed her, thinking she was a suspect in a car theft because of her outfit.
The incident happened on January 13 as the girl was walking home from school and playing in the snow with friends... Continue reading here ▶
Deputies from the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office stopped her, saying she matched the description of a suspect involved in a car theft the day before.
The suspect was described as wearing a pink puffy coat and camouflage pants, which was similar to the girl’s clothing.
The girl’s cousin recorded the encounter on her phone as the girl and her friends insisted she wasn’t involved. However, police accused them of lying and said, “It is what it is. If you’re honest, it will make it easy.”
Earlier that day, the stolen car was found, and four suspects fled. Police caught three but were still looking for a female suspect. Dashcam footage showed the remaining suspect wearing clothes similar to the girl’s.
When officers saw the girl walking, they detained her, showed her the dashcam photo, and insisted she looked like the suspect. The girl cried as officers questioned her, and her friends stayed by her side despite being told to leave.
After a FaceTime call with another deputy, police realized they had the wrong person. The girl’s hair, complexion, and clothing details didn’t match the suspect. She was released seven minutes later, and officers apologized, saying, “I’m sorry about it, but you matched the description pretty clearly.”
The girl’s mother, who chose to stay anonymous, said she didn’t accept the sheriff’s apology. She added that her daughter, who used to enjoy walking to school, now feels unsafe.
The sheriff’s office said handcuffing juveniles is a standard practice to keep situations under control but acknowledged the mistake. They promised to update their policies to notify parents immediately whenever a child is detained, even briefly.
In a statement, the sheriff’s office called their meeting with the girl’s mother “productive” and said they are working to ensure such incidents don’t happen again.
