A standard after-school evening following football practice became a nightmare for Kenwood High School student Taki Allen of Baltimore County, Maryland, when an AI-driven security system confused his bag of empty Doritos for a gun.
The episode, which happened Monday night, has raised serious questions surrounding the application of artificial intelligence in school security systems and prompted demands for a complete review of security measures.
Allen was waiting in the company of friends for a ride home from practice when some eight police vehicles swarmed the school. Officers drew their guns and approached him, telling him to his knees before handcuffing and searching him. The frightening experience left the teenager questioning if he would make it.
“The first thing I was thinking was, was I going to die? Because they had a gun in my face,” Allen said in an interview with CNN affiliate WBAL. “I was just holding a Doritos bag, two hands and one finger out, and they said it looked like a gun.”
Nothing was found when they searched, and officers stumbled upon the bag of chips on the ground where Allen was standing. The harmless snack was flagged by the AI system as a weapon, which led to the overzealous police response.
AI Gun Detection Flub Leads to Police Response for Bag of Chips at Kenwood High
Kenwood High School’s AI gun detection system, managed by Omnilert, reviews video from standard security cameras to detect signs of threats. The technology has been implemented in Baltimore County public schools since 2023, in an effort to curb gun violence.
The school district’s security department made a review of the AI alert, canceling it soon after verifying there was no weapon, as stated by Principal Kate Smith to parents. Nevertheless, there was a serious communication failure. Smith alerted the school resource officer about the initial alert, who then phoned local police for assistance, seemingly unaware that the alert had already been canceled.
This lack of communication led responding armed officers to react to what they perceived as a real threat, only to discover the student in question was actually grasping a bag of chips.
Omnilert apologized for the incident but justified its system’s response. The company reiterated that the AI is meant to alert potential threats and raise them to human evaluation, rather than finalize decisions.
“As the object was ultimately found to be something other than a firearm, the process worked as it was designed: to ensure safety and awareness through quick human confirmation,” the company wrote.
But this explanation has not eased community outrage. Allen’s grandfather, Lamont Davis, is calling for answers about what befell his grandson. “Something needs to be done,” Davis said to WBAL. “Things need to change and people need to be held responsible.”
Baltimore County Council Urges Review of Artificial Intelligence School Security System
Baltimore County Councilman Izzy Patoka was blunt in his reply, writing on social media: “No student in our school system should be accosted by police for consuming a bag of Doritos.”
He urged the school district to rethink its policies regarding the AI weapon-detection system. Fellow Councilman Julian Jones echoed these concerns, requesting a review to ensure proper safeguards prevent similar errors in the future.
This incident highlights the complex challenges schools face when implementing AI technology for security purposes. While these systems promise to help prevent tragedies, they also carry risks of false positives that can traumatize innocent students.
Superintendent Myriam Rogers recognized the intensity of Monday’s events at a Wednesday news conference, referring to the incident as “truly unfortunate.” She made it a point to stress that the district never wishes to place students in such terrorizing situations and added that examining security systems and procedures is just part of the district’s routine.
Principal Smith also tried to calm the community, saying: “We realize how disturbing this was for the student who was searched as well as the other students who witnessed this. Please be assured that making our students and school community safe is one of our top priorities.”
The Baltimore County Police Department told WBAL that officers went to “a report of a suspicious person with a weapon” but found the individual to be unarmed after they searched him.
While schools across the country struggle to prevent gun violence without infringing on students’ rights and well-being, the Doritos example is a blunt reminder that technology can’t substitute for human good sense and clear communication procedures. The forthcoming review of Baltimore County’s AI security systems can have ramifications well beyond one Maryland high school.
