SUISUN VALLEY, CA – Following the questioning by three law enforcement officers of 7-year-old Chad Tenbrink at Suisun Valley Elementary School, Tenbrink’s family is urging Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to sign Assembly Bill 1012: a bill that would have involved Tenbrink’s parents prior to any police interrogation of their son. AB 1012, which passed both houses of the State Legislature with strong bi-partisan support, requires that police obtain permission from an elementary school child’s parent or guardian prior to interrogation. Permission, in the Tenbrinks’ case, was neither asked for nor given.

“I want the whole world to know that what happened to my son can happen to anyone’s young child,” said Linda Tenbrink, Chad’s mother. “I only found out that my son had been interrogated when I picked him up from school. Repeated efforts by school authorities to be in the room when he was questioned were denied. I think the current law must be changed so that children in the future will not be interrogated by the police without their parent’s permission.”

Under current state law, parents must be notified when police take children off campus for questioning. Yet if the same questioning occurs at school, police are not obligated to allow the principal to be present or to notify the parents at all, even after the minor has been questioned.

Chad Tenbrink’s interrogation came after he told his teacher that he thought his older brother was responsible for blowing up the school mailbox. Solano County Sheriffs, who were investigating a string of mailbox bombings around town, pulled Chad from recess and interrogated him at the school as part of their investigation. Principal Tim Mack’s multiple requests to have himself, the secretary, or a teacher sit with Chad during the questioning were repeatedly denied. Chad was alone when he was questioned by two Solano County Sheriffs and one Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) special agent; afterward, he was sent back to class.

All four of the Tenbrink’s children have attended Suisun Valley Elementary. The family has lived in the same home for more than 20 years, farming and making their living selling fruits and vegetables at local farmer’s markets. “We strongly urge Gov. Schwarzenegger to sign AB 1012 so that this will not happen to other families,” says Mrs. Tenbrink. The Tenbrinks hope that by making public Chad’s interrogation, they can put pressure on Gov. Schwarzenegger to sign AB 1012.

AB 1012 has widespread support by many organizations including the California PTA, League of Women Voters of California, Eagle Forum of California, the Pacific Justice Institute, Legal Services for Children, Inc., San Francisco Unified School District, and the California Family Council. The bill passed the Assembly Floor on May 27, 2003 in a 49-19 vote. AB 1012 passed the Senate on September 11, 2003 in a vote of 25-9.