Caution is better than being blown up by some nut job!
Caution is fine. Caution is not the problem.
No one is arguing the school administration and teachers shouldn't be cautious. If a student has an item that looks like it might be a danger to themselves, the staff, or other students, then it should be investigated.
No one is saying the cops shouldn't be cautious. If they get a call about a student bringing an item to school that might be a danger to themselves, the staff, or other students, the cops should treat the matter seriously.
But once the school authorities and police saw the gadget was just a clock, and it was learned that the student had never implied it was anything
but a clock, then the authorities knew that all they were dealing with was a kid with a clock. There was
no reason to arrest him. There might have been a reason to suspend him, if it was found that bringing digital clocks to school is against the rules; but in the absence of such a rule, there is
no reason to suspend him. There was no reason not to simply confiscate the clock until the end of the day, and send the kid back to his classes.
The problem here was not caution, it was the overreaction of the Principal and the police, and the made up bullshit about a hoax bomb used to justify it.
