A West Virginia eighth-grader who was suspended from school for refusing to change his National Rifle Association T-shirt faces up to one year in jail and a $500 fine after being formally charged with obstructing an officer.

Jared Marcum, 14, appeared before a judge Monday and was hit with formal charges that carry a maximum $500 fine and up to a year in jail. The Logan County Police Department initially claimed that Marcum was arrested April 18 for disturbing the education process and obstructing an officer. His father said that officers even went as far as threatening to charge Jared with making terror threats.

"In my view of the facts, Jared didn't do anything wrong," Ben White, Jared's attorney told WTRF. "I think officer Adkins could have done something differently."

Arresting officer James Adkins claimed that Marcum’s refusal to talk obstructed his ability to do his job, while White argued that Adkins never made reference to any violent acts or threats in his petition.

A petition on Change.org calling for charges against the boy to be dropped had nearly 1,000 signatures by Monday afternoon.

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