A 5-year-old Tennessee boy with autism was accused of sexual harassment when he hugged a classmate and kissed another child on the cheek, according to reports.

Summery Putnam, who is the legal guardian of Nathan, said that East Ride Elementary School filed a report against him — and she now fears that there could be long-term repercussions, news station WTVC reported.

She said she received a call from the boy’s teacher three weeks ago claiming he overstepped boundaries by hugging and kissing other classmates.

“I was sick to my stomach,” Putnam told the news station. “The teacher called me and she said, ‘You need to have a talk with Nathan about boundaries.'”

Putnam said Nathan has autism and his diagnosis can make it difficult for him to understand social cues.

“If you don’t understand how autism works, you’ll think he’s acting out or being difficult,” Putnam said. “He doesn’t know what he’s doing wrong.”

But the school filed a report with the Department of Child Services in response to the incident, his family said. He also has switched teachers and was enrolled in special-education services.

A spokesperson for the Hamilton County Department of Education said that complaints are up to the discretion of the state.

“School personnel are required to [present] concerns regarding children to the Department of Child Services (DCS),” the school official said. “It’s up to DCS to determine if those reports are acted on by DCS and what form those actions may take.”

DCS didn’t respond to request for comment, the news outlet reported.

Nathan’s grandmother, Debi Amick, has taken to social media to criticize how the school district handled the incident, WTVC reported.

“What do you do when a 5-year-old child is being labeled a sexual predator and accused of sexual harassment by the school system?” Amick wrote on a private Facebook group. “It was disclosed that it will go in his record for the rest of his life that he is a sex offender. This child is autistic. He comprehends and functions very different than your typical 5-year-old.”