Autistic boy detained by New York police for mental evaluation after discussing ‘Heathers’ for school
Autistic boy dragged from his NYC home by police for a mental evaluation after choosing the movie ‘Heathers’ for an assignment and telling the teacher he identified with the murderous protagonist
- Terrence O’Connor, 15, chose cult comedy Winona Ryder for an assignment
- His father Drew said a teacher reported him to school officials, who tipped the NYPD
- Police detained the boy without anyone telling them he had autism, his parents say
A 15-year-old boy with autism was detained and subjected to a mental evaluation by the NYPD after telling a teacher he identified with the murderous protagonist of the 1989 film Heathers.
Terrence O’Connor, 15, chose the Winona Ryder cult comedy as part of a 2022 assignment that involved discussing a movie in class at PS 72/The Lexington Academy in Harlem.
The film, which also stars Christian Slater as JD, the character O’Connor claimed to identify with, is about four teenage girls who go up against JD, a misanthropic boy who wants to kill them.
The teacher tipped off school administrators, who then notified the NYPD, without ever telling authorities that the boy was autistic, father Drew O’Connor said.
O’Connor – who told it the New York Post the boy is 15 but “actually more like five years old – said his son was placed under arrest “for murderous thoughts and a possible terrorist threat” according to a Manhattan Supreme Court complaint.
The family is suing New York City schools for putting the teen through the ordeal.
A 15-year-old boy with autism was detained and subjected to a mental evaluation by the NYPD after telling a teacher he identified with the murderous protagonist of the 1989 film Heathers, played by Christian Slater (pictured)
The father is seeking damages from the city, the Department of Education, NYPD and New York Health + Hospitals, among others.
Terrence – who is also referred to as TJ – was detained by more than half a dozen officers when they showed up at his door late the same day he spoke with his teacher, the lawsuit alleges.
They then sent him to a local hospital for a mental evaluation, with his father Drew saying it was emotionally devastating.
“That really screwed him up. He saw a lot in one night that no child should ever see, mainly because of other people’s mistakes and poor judgment,” he said.
O’Connor added that his son is not someone who would ever pose a threat to anyone else.
‘If you see this boy, he won’t hurt an insect. He is the sweetest child in the world,” he said. “They never told the police that my son was a special needs student. I wasn’t even allowed to say goodbye to my son. They held him, no lawyer, nothing, they were talking to him back there.”
Unfortunately, this whole ordeal – which kept the boy out until after midnight – has left him paranoid.
“My son, he doesn’t leave the house. He thinks the police and federals are watching him. So he isolates himself. My son was not destroyed for that.’
Terrence O’Connor, 15, chose the Winona Ryder cult comedy as part of an assignment where he had to discuss a movie in class at P.S. 72/The Lexington Academy in Harlem
The film, which also stars Christian Slater as JD, the character O’Connor claimed to identify with, is about four teenage girls who go up against JD, a misanthropic boy who wants to kill them.
The Department of Education is suing for damages, along with the city, the NYPD and the city’s hospitals
O’Connor, who has two other children, said the family has dealt with the loss of their mother and the loss of their home in Superstorm Sandy. This has turned out to be another emotional blow.
‘I don’t have my son. My son, the one I would sit down with and make Legos, I don’t have him,” he said.
Lawyer Migir Ilganayev said, “What happened to TJ should not happen to any child, whether they are autistic or not.”
The NYPD declined to comment on the case.