An El Paso mom was taken into custody last week after she posed as her 13-year-old daughter. She managed to get inside a middle school, went to classes, had lunch there and checked out the rules and the whole environment.
This was part of an experiment she tried in an attempt to prove that there are many security flaws in schools.
How did it all happen?
Casey Garcia, 30, was taken into custody last Tuesday. She was charged with criminal trespass and tampering with government records after she impersonated her daughter and infiltrated San Elizario Independent School District, as the El Paso Times reported.
Court records reveal that the mom is 4 feet, 11 inches tall and weighs 105 pounds.
Garcia documented this “social experiment” and posted it on social media. She allegedly made it all the way to seventh period before she was discovered.
The mother shared on social media how she used hair dye and some skin tanner in order to look just like her daughter. After taking these measures she breached school security. She went inside the building using her daughter’s ID number and saying that she had signed in.
She also claims that she wasn’t asked to show any physical ID. Then she greeted the principal and another member of the school staff and went ahead to attend classes instead of her daughter.
Garcia also complained on social media that as the day passed all teachers she encountered were more concerned about her having her phone out than about who she really was.
How did it end?
“I think the deal breaker for me was actually walking in and posing as a seventh-grader. I mean, I'm no spring chicken, but it wasn't hard. And I made it to all seven periods, until the last teacher, she was female, and she said, 'Julie, can you stay after class?' And I said absolutely. She looked at me and she said, 'You're not Julie.”
“No, I'm not. I took off my mask, I took off my glasses, and I said, 'No, I'm not Julie. I'm Julie's mom,” Garcia recalls, according to The Blaze.
The mother defended what she did based on the idea that she meant to show the flaws in the school’s security system. Her alleged goal was to prevent future school attacks.
“I'm telling you right now, we need better security at our schools. This is what I tried to prove. I kind of feel like I proved it. I think we need metal detectors. I don't think that backpacks are a good idea. I didn't do this for any other reason but to prove a point. I’m sorry that it had to be that specific school district. I am very sorry. They’re all wonderful people. The principal is the nicest person I’ve ever met and I’m sorry that it had to be you,” the mother explained.
However, her actions created a stir and not all feedback was positive, with many users accusing her of doing something very strange.
“I exposed the dangers of our schools, and I am trying to protect my children and yours. If you want to come after me for that, there’s really nothing else I can say. Absolutely, it's nuts, because you don't understand my integrity, you don't understand why I did it or if there was a real reason or if there wasn't,” the El Paso woman defended her social experiment.