‘AITA for refusing to help my son after his school prank resulted in significant property damage?’

A mother has posted on Reddit how she did not help her teenage son after his school prank went out of hand and now she’s feeling guilty.

Taking to Reddit’s popular sub-section, “Am I The A*****e” (AITA), the 45-year-old woman began, “My (45F) son (17M) and his friends pulled a prank at their high school that went way too far. They thought it would be funny to release a bunch of live chickens into the school as a senior prank.”

The woman revealed that the prank ended up being a big mess as it “resulted in some significant property damage, including broken windows and damaged equipment.”

Woman thinks covering up for her son is not a good idea

She mentioned that her son then came to her for help and requested her to “come up with an alibi so he wouldn't get in trouble. He admitted that he and his friends were the masterminds behind the prank.”

But the Redditor was angry with what happened and refused to help him. She thought her son needed to understand his mistake and “take responsibility for his actions.”

“He’s now facing potential disciplinary action from the school, and he's really upset with me for not having his back,” the mother shared and also noted that her son has accused her of being too harsh.

Even her husband does not support her.

“My husband thinks I should have supported our son and helped him avoid trouble,” the woman wrote, before adding, “I feel strongly that this is a valuable lesson in accountability, but I can't shake the feeling that maybe I'm being too hard on him. AITAH?”

Netizens praise woman for teaching her son a lesson

People in the comment section understood her point and one said, “NTA. Look, your son messed up big time, and while I get that he’s freaking out, helping him cover it up isn’t doing him any favors. This isn’t just some harmless prank; it caused actual damage to the school. Actions have consequences, and he needs to face them. If you helped him lie, what would he learn? That mommy and daddy will bail him out every time he screws up? Nah. You’re teaching him accountability, which is way more valuable than saving his ego right now. He’ll be mad, sure, but someday (probably not soon, let’s be real), he’ll realize you did the right thing. Stay strong.”

Another one commented, “NTA. Enabling him by covering up for his actions would only encourage more irresponsible behavior. You’re doing the right thing by letting him face the consequences.”

A Redditor wrote, “NTA Don't do the crime if you can't do the time. If you cover for him now, you'll be covering for him for a much worse crime in a few years.”

The second Redditor posted, “NTA and thank you for teaching your son that actions have consequences. He might not appreciate it right now but this will serve him later in life. You have a husband problem; not only does he not support you but his behaviour is going to make you look like the ‘bad guy’ to your son.”

“NTA...your son chose to pull the prank and asked you to lie to the school. You did the right thing,” a comment read.

“NTA - A harmless prank does not cause significant property damage. That is not the definition of harmless,” a Reddit user added.

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