Nia Whims: Florida teen wrongly jailed for bomb threats sues school and Instagram
A 13-year-old from Florida who was wrongly jailed for nearly two weeks for sending out bomb threats to her school on social media has now decided to sue Renaissance Charter School and Instagram. The law enforcement later found out that the threats were sent from a different IP address that corresponds to a younger classmate aged 12, using false emails and social media accounts under Nia Whims' name.
Nia was placed in a juvenile detention center for 11 days in November last year while the investigation was carried out. She was later exonerated when the authorities discovered that the threats were made by another seventh-grader who posed as Nia. Lezlie-Ann Davis, Nia’s mother, announced their lawsuit against Renaissance Charter School, Instagram, and its parent company Meta on Wednesday. Additionally, they are demanding a sum of a minimum of $30,000 over costs and attorney's fees. The family is also planning to sue the Pembroke Pines Police Department.
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Nia and her mother are enraged at the social media giant’s negligence and the police’s handling of the case that failed to prove her innocence that was “literally available at the press of a button.” As a result, Nia had to face horrifying and distressing circumstances at the juvenile detention center.
“When it comes to our babies, when it comes to our children, law enforcement needs to make sure they do a thorough investigation,” said Marwan Porter, the attorney for Nia and her family. “Another young lady who was in [the detention center], older than [Nia], threatened to stab her over a piece of chocolate,” he added.
According to the court documents filed on Tuesday in Broward Country, Instagram failed to swiftly turn over the information to the authorities. It was later determined by the authorities that the bomb threats sent out to Renaissance Charter School via the platform did not match Nia’s IP address. Nia describes her experience at the juvenile detention center as “horrifying”, which has left her feeling anxious. As a result, the seventh-grader has currently opted to learn from home.
"I feel distanced. I don't really want to talk to anybody about the situation," Nia said. During the press conference on Wednesday, Davis shared, “At one point I wanted her out so bad I called my lawyer, and I was like I'd rather do the time than her. ''What can I do?’”. A spokesperson for Renaissance Charter School said that they “always have and always will take all appropriate actions to ensure our students and staff are safe.”