EAGLE POINT, Ore. (AP) - School officials in this southern Oregon town suspended a first-grader whose drawing of a stick figure shooting another in the head attracted complaints from parents.

Ryan Weathers, 6, was sent home from Little Butte School on Tuesday.

Tina Mondale, the district’s school improvement director, declined to discuss specifics of the case, saying the issue is between the school and the parents involved.

A disciplinary report given to the boy’s family stated the reason for the suspension was the boy “threatened to shoot two girls in the head.”

It’s unclear if the drawing was accompanied by a verbal comment.

The boy’s father, Douglas Weathers, told the (Medford) Mail Tribune newspaper that the drawing was inspired by an episode of “The Simpsons,” in which a character displays a drawing of a student being shot by a gun.

Weathers said he understands the concerns other parents may have, but felt a suspension was too severe.

“I told the principal that I agreed that he shouldn’t have done the drawing, but suspending him seems like a policy with no intelligence behind it,” he said. “They didn’t seem to care that he’s only in the first grade.”

Though Ryan was suspended for one day, Weathers plans to hold the boy out of school until he speaks with school officials. He is scheduled to have a conference with Ryan’s teacher on Friday.

“I’m not sure how this is going to affect how my kid is perceived,” Weathers said. “They may view him as a violent kid or a terrorist, or whatever.”

Weathers said he owns a handgun, but it’s locked in a safe and his son has never seen it.

Weathers added that his biggest problem with the incident is that Ryan tried to blame the drawing on another child.

“Lying is a big problem for me,” Weathers said. “No matter what happens I tell him to tell the truth.”