A teenager is suing the Detroit school district for false arrest and malicious prosecution after spending nearly 40 days in custody for throwing a dangerous snowball.
In December 2013, Dominique Rondeau, 16 at the time, was accused of throwing an icy snowball at a school police car, shattering the windshield.
Rondeau, who denied throwing the snowball, spent nearly 40 days in juvenile detention, including the Christmas period. His family could not afford the bond, set at $2,000, and Rondeau was only released when it was reduced.
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The Detroit Free Press reported that Rondeau, now 18, has filed a lawsuit alleging false arrest and malicious prosecution.
A judge dismissed the case against Rondeau after officers could not identify him as the person who threw the snowball in a video in court.
There are other cases in which school districts in the US have been sued.
Earlier this year, the family of a 14-year-old transgender boy sued four school districts in Michigan. The student's attorney claimed "the school districts failed miserably to keep [him] safe from bullying", My Fox Detroit reported.
Rasor said the districts did not keep the student's private information confidential and refused to use his chosen male name.
The case, he said, was about "changing the playing field for LGBT youth in schools."
