The Latest: Muslim student with clock plans transfer

The latest on the Muslim teenager who was questioned by police after officials at his North Texas high school thought his homemade clock looked like a bomb (all times local):

4:30 p.m.

A 14-year-old boy says he’s still suspended from school because of an alarm clock he made that school officials thought looked like a bomb.

Irving police arrested MacArthur High School freshman Ahmed Mohamed after a teacher found the clock he made to be suspicious. Police later said they wouldn’t press charges, but Ahmed told reporters Wednesday that he remains suspended from school until Thursday.

Ahmed told reporters during a news conference Wednesday afternoon that he plans to transfer to “any other school.”

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The previous item has been corrected to reflect that Ahmed said he plans to transfer to “any other school.”

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3:30 p.m.

A Texas mayor who has accused mosque leaders of creating separate laws for Muslims says school officials followed protocol when investigating whether a Muslim student brought a bomb to school.

Irving Mayor Beth Van Duyne comments on Facebook Wednesday came after word spread that 14-year-old Ahmed Mohamed was placed in handcuffs and suspended for coming to school with a homemade clock that teachers thought resembled a bomb.

Van Duyne said administrators at MacArthur High School west of Dallas followed procedures when responding to a possible threat.

Van Duyne earlier this year led an endorsement by Irving leaders of a state bill meant to forbid judges from using foreign laws in rulings. She claimed imams were “bypassing American courts” by offering mediation.

Police declined to seek charges against Ahmed.

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2:50 p.m.

The White House says a 14-year-old Muslim boy was “failed” by his Texas teachers who thought a clock made by the teen was possibly a bomb.

White House press secretary Josh Earnest called the episode involving Ahmed Mohamed a “teachable moment.”

Earnest’s comments followed a tweet by President Barack Obama offering support for the teen, a student in the Dallas suburb of Irving.

Ahmed was invited to participate in an astronomy night the White House is organizing next month with leading scientists.

Earnest says the invitation was offered as a way for Ahmed to “nurture that intellectual curiosity.”

The boy was placed in handcuffs, and his family says he was suspended from school. Police announced Wednesday that they would not seek any charges against him.

The family is holding a news conference at 4 p.m. Wednesday.

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12:15 p.m.

President Barack Obama has invited a 14-year-old Muslim student to the White House after the teen was detained by police for taking a homemade clock to school that teachers thought looked like a bomb.

In a tweet posted Wednesday, Obama calls Ahmed Mohamed’s clock “cool” and says more kids should be inspired like him to enjoy science, because “it’s what makes America great.”

The Dallas Morning News reports that Ahmed enjoys tinkering with electronics and that he built the clock at home on Sunday night. Police detained him Monday after teachers at his school voiced concern about the device. He was suspended from school for three days.

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12:01 p.m.

Police say they will not charge a 14-year-old Muslim boy whose teachers were alarmed when he brought a homemade clock to his Texas high school.

Teachers alerted the police because they thought the clock resembled a bomb.

Irving police Chief Larry Boyd said during a news conference Wednesday that Ahmed Mohamed will not be charged with possessing a hoax bomb because there’s no evidence that he meant to cause any harm.

Boyd says the clock that Ahmed built looked “suspicious in nature.”

Ahmed’s family says high school administrators in the Dallas suburb of Irving on Monday suspended the teenager for three days after he showed the clock to teachers.

School district spokeswoman Lesley Weaver says officials were concerned with student safety and not the boy’s Muslim faith.

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