Spanish Teen Sues His Mother for Taking Away His Phone

A 15-year-old boy from Almeria, Spain is suing his mother. The reason? She took away his phone.

The incident reportedly took place on Feb. 28. The 37-year-old El Ejido mother wanted her son to put away his device and study more — so, naturally, she took it away. What happened next was probably a bit unexpected: her son took her to court, accusing her of “mistreatment.” For that alleged crime, he demanded a nine-month jail sentence for his mother, as well as payment for his legal fees, according to local publication La Voz De Almeria.

The judge who heard the case came down in favor of the mother, however — declaring that she was “well within her rights,” and took “correct action” as a responsible mother, according to The Local. “She would not be a responsible mother if she allowed her son to be distracted by the mobile phone and fail to study,” said the court ruling by magistrate Luis Columna — spotted by the Europa Press. The magistrate reportedly dismissed the case, and went on to say that the mother’s actions were not only justified, but expected.

“Among the duties required to be undertaken by a parent, as outlined in the Civil Code, is that of being responsible for the education of one’s children, which is exactly what the accused did in this case, without taking it to unnecessary extremes,” the magistrate wrote.

Although certainly an unusual court case, it’s not the first time that a teen has taken their parents to court over technology. Last year, an 18-year-old woman from Austria sued her parents because they posted pictures of her potty-training as a child to their Facebook pages, CNET reported.