by Lauren Nutall
February 19, 2024
The incident sparked nationwide conversation with some people believing that race was a contributing factor.
The case against an 11-year-old Black child who was arrested in August 2023 after urinating in public has been dismissed, according to a public statement from the family’s attorney.
Legal representatives for the family announced on Feb. 5. “In a significant development, the Carlos Moore Law Group heralds the dismissal of a case against 10-year-old Quantavious Eason by Judge Rusty Harlow, who ruled that Eason is not a child in need of supervision, effectively dismissing the Tate County Youth Court petition against him,” it read. “This outcome is not just a victory for Eason and his family, but for juvenile justice advocates everywhere.”
On Aug. 10, 2023, Latonya Eason, the child’s mother, was visiting a lawyer’s office when her son urinated behind her vehicle in Senatobia County. He was spotted by nearby law enforcement, who subsequently took the young boy into custody at the local police station. The incident sparked national backlash, resulting in the termination of one of the arresting officers. The Senatobia County Police Chief Richard Chandler published a statement on Facebook, stating that the remaining officers involved in the arrest would face disciplinary action and that the department would undergo annual mandated juvenile training.
Quantavious was sentenced in December by Judge Rusty Harlow to three months of probation as well as a book report on athlete Kobe Bryant. Additionally, the probation agreement imposed strict measures against the third grader, including discretionary drug tests and an 8 p.m. curfew during Christmas. However, Latonya and the family’s attorney, Carlos Moore, rejected these terms citing its harshness, instead calling for the charges to be dropped entirely or to proceed to trial.
Moore believes that race was a factor in the child’s arrest. “He did what any reasonable person would do: He urinated next to the car behind the door — not exposing himself to anyone,” he told NBC News. “He would not have been arrested, prosecuted or sentenced if he was any other color, race, besides Black.”
“We are not going to appeal,” said Latonya in December. “He will not have a criminal record; this is probation. And he is a fan of Kobe Bryant, so he doesn’t mind writing the two-page report. But, still, the principle of it — he should not have to do anything. He should be enjoying his Christmas holiday like the other kids.”
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