Teen Accused Of Cheating For 'Thumbs Up' During RMV Test
BOSTON (CBS) - A teenage girl has been accused of cheating while taking her written test at the Watertown RMV. The girl has a learning disability and her mom says she was just trying to encourage her with a 'thumbs up.'
Courtney Carroll now has to wait two months before she can try again.
"I'm very angry, I'm very upset because they are accusing her of cheating and she didn't," says Pamela Carroll, Courtney's mother.
"It's devastating for her self-esteem for her learning disability to fight back."
Pam says her daughter Courtney just turned 16 and was very excited to get her drivers permit. Courtney has ADHD and was nervous about the test.
"She already had 15 answers done," Carroll said. "Every one of them was right."
But during the test, as she was behind the glass window, at some point she looked at her mom and gave her a thumbs up.
The RMV says she was communicating with her mom behind the glass which is forbidden. So they failed her.
"She said it's just like the SATs and stuff you can't have any communication," Carroll said.
They currently put a freeze on her permit for another 60 days, then she will have to take the test again.
"My poor daughter, 16 years old, highlight of her day, for her birthday, was to go in there with full confidence because she already had taken that 40-hour class to get that permit," Carroll said. "And she did it on her own and was stopped and accused of cheating."
In a statement to WBZ, the RMV said they try to accommodate anyone with disabilities but they need to know about it beforehand.
