October 26, 2025
‘I used to be simply holding a Doritos bag — it was two fingers and one finger out, they usually mentioned it seemed like a gun,’ mentioned the coed Taki Allen.
A Baltimore highschool pupil says he was terrified after cops approached him with weapons drawn when a synthetic intelligence (AI) system falsely recognized his bag of Doritos as a firearm. Taki Allen, a pupil at Kenwood Excessive College, was sitting with mates exterior the college Oct. 20 when police out of the blue arrived, responding to what they believed was a report of an armed particular person.
“At first, I didn’t know the place they have been going till they began strolling towards me with weapons, speaking about, ‘Get on the bottom,’ and I used to be like, ‘What?’” Allen instructed retailers, as reported by The Guardian.
Allen mentioned the officers handcuffed and searched him earlier than realizing he was unarmed. They later confirmed him the picture that had triggered the AI system’s alert. “I used to be simply holding a Doritos bag — it was two fingers and one finger out, they usually mentioned it seemed like a gun,” he mentioned.
The incident stemmed from Baltimore County’s use of an AI-powered surveillance system that scans faculty safety footage for what it interprets as weapons. The system pinged on Allen. When the software program flags a possible risk, it sends an automated alert to highschool workers and legislation enforcement.
In a letter despatched to households, faculty officers acknowledged the misery attributable to the occasion. “We perceive how upsetting this was for the person who was searched in addition to the opposite college students who witnessed the incident,” the letter learn of the Allen state of affairs.
“Our counselors will present direct assist to the scholars who have been concerned on this incident and are additionally obtainable to talk with any pupil who may have assist.”
The Baltimore County Police Division confirmed the false alarm, stating that “officers assigned to Precinct 11-Essex responded to Kenwood Excessive College following a report of a suspicious particular person with a weapon. As soon as on scene, the particular person [Taki Allen] was searched and it was decided the topic was not in possession of any weapons.”
The grandfather of Taki Allen, Lamont Davis, mentioned he was shaken by the encounter. “No one needs this to occur to their youngster. Nobody needs this to occur,” he instructed retailers.
The incident has renewed issues concerning the reliability of AI surveillance in colleges and the potential for false alerts to escalate into harmful conditions.
RELATED CONTENT: IBM Senior Engineer Says AI Empowers Systemic Racism
