A high school student in Baltimore County was handcuffed and searched by police after an artificial intelligence (AI) gun detection system apparently mistook a bag of Doritos for a firearm.
Taki Allen was sitting with friends outside Kenwood High School on Monday evening, eating a snack, when armed officers approached him. “At first, I didn’t know where they were going until they started walking toward me with guns, talking about, ‘Get on the ground,’ and I was like, ‘What?’” Allen told WBAL-TV 11 News.
Allen said officers made him kneel, handcuffed him, and searched him, finding nothing. They then showed him a picture that had triggered the alert. “I was just holding a Doritos bag – it was two hands and one finger out, and they said it looked like a gun,” he explained.
Baltimore County high schools introduced the gun detection system last year, using school cameras and AI to spot potential weapons. If it detects something suspicious, it alerts school and law enforcement officials.
In a letter to families, the school acknowledged the distress caused: “We understand how upsetting this was for the individual that was searched as well as the other students who witnessed the incident. Our counselors will provide direct support to the students who were involved.” Baltimore County police confirmed that after searching the subject, it was determined he had no weapons.
Lamont Davis, Allen’s grandfather, told the station: “Nobody wants this to happen to their child. No one wants this to happen.”
