TAMPA, Fla. — A Tampa mother is demanding answers and policy changes after she says Tampa Police Department officers followed her 15-year-old son and his 12-year-old friend for miles before detaining and searching them on private property without an adult present.
I first heard about Tiffany Poole's story while listening to public comments at Thursday's Tampa City Council meeting.
"They ended up searching my children, had their hands up, 12 and 15-years-old, if you can imagine that patting them down without their mother and the grandparent was in the house," Poole told the council.
"So I have a serious problem you guys that I'm gonna keep marching on about if I have to stand by myself," Poole said.
After hearing her emotional plea, I reached out to Poole to learn more about the March 29 incident and the toll it has taken on her family.
Poole, who described herself as an involved PTA mom who tracks her son's phone location, said the situation left her feeling helpless. She said her son and his friend were riding e-bikes when police observed them doing wheelies on Bayshore Boulevard. She said officers followed the minors to East Tampa, stopping them on her family's private property.
I asked Poole what she wanted from the city council members.
"I asked them to help me. Help me understand why minors are being pulled, being treated like suspects and being detained as if they have to raise their hands and be searched," Poole said.
When I asked what went through her mind as a mother finding out what happened, Poole described a deep emotional impact that has led to her crying a lot and seeking counseling for her son.
"I honestly want help for this, because it's not only emotional for me to understand, imagine my child raising his hands up being searched," Poole said.
She says although she's talked to him about interactions with law enforcement, it's still weighing heavily on them.
"That is emotionally damaging for him, because now that I got to talk to him about how this makes him feel and to send him to counseling, but I have to go back and remember what we talked about, you're not the same, and I tell him over and over, you're not the same," Poole said.
Poole says an adult was never present during the police encounter.
Her mother was inside the home at the time, but officers never knocked on the door or attempted to contact an adult. She said she only found out about the incident because her son recorded a video on his phone.
According to an incident report, officers were patrolling Bayshore Boulevard when they observed two Black males dressed in all black operating electric dirt bikes on the sidewalk. The report states the officers monitored the subjects driving recklessly, popping wheelies, and running a red light.
The officers noted the subjects stopped and parked near a residence on the corner of East 21st Avenue and North 25th Street. According to the report, officers checked the bikes' vehicle identification numbers, which were not reported stolen, and released the subjects with a warning for traffic infractions.
Poole claims there are several discrepancies between the written report and her son's experience. While the report stated officers observed two Black males, Poole said her son's 12-year-old friend is Hispanic. She also disputed the report's claim that the boys were issued a warning and stopped near the corner of 21st and 25th streets, stating they received no warning and were on her family's private property when approached by eight officers.
In Florida, no statute explicitly requires law enforcement to notify or obtain parental consent before questioning minors. In most situations, officers may legally interview juveniles in public without a parent present.
If a child is taken into custody, Florida law requires officers to attempt to notify a parent or guardian without delay, but it is not a precondition to questioning. According to the Tampa Police Department's Standard Operating Procedures, officers have discretionary alternatives for minor cases, which include electing not to file charges and effecting an immediate release accompanied by a verbal warning.
Seeking answers, Poole tells me she went to two different police districts and said she was given the runaround before finally speaking with a lieutenant over the phone to get a report number.
I asked Poole if the incident felt reminiscent of past concerns over "biking while Black" policies.
"Oh yes, oh yes, oh yes," Poole said. "I don't want my child to be given a ticket for just riding while Black, because he has other friends that ride from all over."
A previous Tampa Police Department policy, dubbed by critics "Biking while Black," claimed to cut down on crime and increase bike safety by stopping cyclists who were riding bikes without proper safety gear or with someone on the handlebars. However, after complaints from the community, a 2016 Department of Justice analysis found that the policy disproportionately impacted Black bikers and even led to citations, charges, and arrests in some cases.
This recent incident comes as the city debates how to handle e-bikes and trail safety. In December, the Tampa City Council unanimously voted down a controversial ordinance that would have established 10 mph speed limits on city trails, including the Riverwalk and Bayshore Boulevard.
The proposed ordinance would have included electric bikes under existing regulations and prohibited "tricks and wheelies." Critics of that ban raised concerns that the ordinance would disproportionately impact certain groups and create financial barriers, with some referencing the past policies that led to the federal investigation of "biking while Black."
Council members opted to kill the legislation and schedule public workshops for April to address trail safety through a more comprehensive approach.
Poole filed a records request and a formal complaint with the police department. She is asking the city to reconsider how it handles e-bike ordinances and suggests creating a designated space, like a pump track, for kids to ride safely and show off their talents.
"Create something else. Instead of making it a bad thing, making an ordinance, create an outlet for them, create another way for them to go. That's all I'm asking. And stop stopping the minors and searching them," Poole said.
TPD tells me they are working with the mother to rectify the situation.
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