KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The ACLU of Missouri filed a lawsuit on Thursday against the Kansas City Public Schools on behalf of a child who they say was handcuffed by an elementary school resource officer in 2014.

The lawsuit alleges that the 7-year-old was handcuffed for more than 15 minutes while waiting in the principal’s office for a parent to arrive after he was removed from class. The ACLU claims the child was handcuffed and pushed down a hallway after he cried out in response to being bullied in his classroom.

“This child committed no crime, threatened no one, and posed no danger to anyone,” ACLU of Missouri Legal Director Tony Rothert said in a news release. “Gratuitously handcuffing children is cowardly and violates the constitution.”

The ACLU also claims that following the incident, the second grader was too terrified to return to school so his mother withdrew him and decided to home school him for the next two years.

“Our children need trained and concerned figures in schools that know how to intervene. It’s not okay to abuse your authority and handcuff kids as a means of discipline,” said Tomesha Primm, the child’s mother said in a news release. “As a parent, I want to make sure no other child – in Kansas City or anywhere else in the country – experiences what my son did.”

FOX 4 reached out to KCPS for comment, and a spokeswoman declined, citing pending litigation.

FOX 4’s Judy Le will have more on this story on FOX 4 news at 5 and 6 p.m.