Artificial Intelligence Flags Chips For Gun At Baltimore County School: Reports

ESSEX, MD — An artificial intelligence security software flagged a bag of chips as a possible gun at a Baltimore County school, reports said.

The incident happened around 7 p.m. Monday at Kenwood High School, Principal Kate Smith said.

WBAL-TV said Taki Allen was sitting with friends outside the school after football practice, eating a bag of chips. Police officers showed up 20 minutes later with guns and told Allen to get on the ground, Allen told WBAL.

"They made me get on my knees, put my hands behind my back, and cuffed me. Then, they searched me and they figured out I had nothing," Allen told WBAL, adding that "I was just holding a Doritos bag — it was two hands and one finger out, and they said it looked like a gun."

The 16-year-old Allen told WBFF, "I didn't feel safe. I didn't feel like the school actually cared about me. Because nobody came up to me after, not even the principal."

Allen told WBFF that "They didn't apologize. They just told me it was protocol."

"It was mainly like, am I gonna die? Are they going to kill me?" Allen said in his interview with WBFF. "They showed me the picture, said that looks like a gun — I said, no, it's chips."

Omnilert, the AI software that alerted officials, said the system worked as intended.

"It was verified and forwarded within seconds to Baltimore County Public Schools' safety team for their assessment," Omnilert told WJZ. "Within moments, the event was marked as resolved in our system. Omnilert's involvement concluded at that point, and the system operated as designed — detecting a possible threat, routing it for human review, and ensuring rapid, informed decision-making."

BCPS Superintendent Myriam Rogers told WJZ the school system installed Omnilert in 2023.

"The program did what it was supposed to do, which was to signal an alert and for humans to take a look to find out if there was cause for concern at that moment," Rogers told WJZ.

Principal Smith said, "We understand how upsetting this was for the individual that was searched as well as the other students who witnessed the incident."

"Our counselors will provide direct support to the students who were involved in this incident and are also available to speak with any student who may need support," Smith said in the Tuesday letter to families. "Please know that ensuring the safety of our students and school community is one of our highest priorities. We work closely with Baltimore County police to ensure that we can promptly respond to any potential safety concerns, and it is essential that we all work together to maintain a safe and welcoming environment for all Kenwood High School students and staff."