Passing custom events between modules through parent application

Question

I have created a custom event that I want to use to pass a string between two modules.  The event looks like this:
    package com.mypackage.events
          import flash.events.Event;
          public class ThumbDeleteEvent extends Event
                    public static const THUMBS_DELETED:String = "thumbsDeleted";
                    public var files:String;
                    public function ThumbDeleteEvent(type:String, files:String)
                    super(type);
                    this.files = files;
                    // Override the inherited clone() method.
                    override public function clone():Event {
                    return new ThumbDeleteEvent(type, files);
In one module I dispatch the event like so:
    parentApplication.dispatchEvent(new ThumbDeleteEvent("parentApplication.thumbsDeleted", files));
and in another module I listen for the event like so:
    public function init():void {
                    parentApplication.addEventListener("parentApplication.thumbsDeleted", onThumbsDelete);
if I use ThumbsDeleteEvent as the type passed in to the listener function like this:
    public function onThumbsDelete(evt:ThumbDeleteEvent):void{
           trace("thumb delete event for thumbs: "+evt.files);
I get the following error:
    TypeError: Error #1034: Type Coercion failed: cannot convert  com.mypackage.events::ThumbDeleteEvent@26748a31 to com.mypackage.events.ThumbDeleteEvent.
if I just use Event as the type passed in to the listener function like this:
    public function onThumbsDelete(evt:ThumbDeleteEvent):void{
          if(evt is ThumbDeleteEvent){
                    trace("thumb delete event for thumbs: "+(evt as ThumbDeleteEvent).files);
          }else{
                    var type:XML = describeType(evt);
                    trace(type.toXMLString());
It works but does not think it is a ThumbDeleteEvent type class (it hits the else statement) the xml output of describe type says its type is:
    type name="com.mypackage.events::ThumbDeleteEvent"
What is going on here?  If I put a breakpoint in the debugger it says the event is a ThumbDeleteEvent and I can see the files parameter and its right???

Answer 1

Sorry I have been trying all sorts of stuff and I cut and pasted the wrong version, I meant to put this:
if I just use Event as the type passed in to the listener function like this:
    public function onThumbsDelete(evt:Event):void{
          if(evt is ThumbDeleteEvent){
                    trace("thumb delete event for thumbs: "+(evt as ThumbDeleteEvent).files);
          }else{
                    var type:XML = describeType(evt);
                    trace(type.toXMLString());
Then it gets passed to the else condition (it does not recognize it as a ThumbDeleteEvent) and this is the output of the trace:
<type name="com.helius.events::ThumbDeleteEvent" base="flash.events::Event" isDynamic="false" isFinal="false" isStatic="false">
  <extendsClass type="flash.events::Event"/>
  <extendsClass type="Object"/>
  <constructor>
    <parameter index="1" type="String" optional="false"/>
    <parameter index="2" type="String" optional="false"/>
    <parameter index="3" type="Boolean" optional="true"/>
    <parameter index="4" type="Boolean" optional="true"/>
  </constructor>
  <variable name="files" type="String"/>
  <accessor name="type" access="readonly" type="String" declaredBy="flash.events::Event"/>
  <accessor name="bubbles" access="readonly" type="Boolean" declaredBy="flash.events::Event"/>
  <accessor name="cancelable" access="readonly" type="Boolean" declaredBy="flash.events::Event"/>
  <accessor name="target" access="readonly" type="Object" declaredBy="flash.events::Event"/>
  <accessor name="currentTarget" access="readonly" type="Object" declaredBy="flash.events::Event"/>
  <accessor name="eventPhase" access="readonly" type="uint" declaredBy="flash.events::Event"/>
  <method name="stopImmediatePropagation" declaredBy="flash.events::Event" returnType="void"/>
  <method name="preventDefault" declaredBy="flash.events::Event" returnType="void"/>
  <method name="isDefaultPrevented" declaredBy="flash.events::Event" returnType="Boolean"/>
  <method name="clone" declaredBy="com.helius.events::ThumbDeleteEvent" returnType="flash.events::Event"/>
  <method name="toString" declaredBy="flash.events::Event" returnType="String"/>
  <method name="formatToString" declaredBy="flash.events::Event" returnType="String">
    <parameter index="1" type="String" optional="false"/>
  </method>
  <method name="stopPropagation" declaredBy="flash.events::Event" returnType="void"/>
</type>
This causes a TypeError:
public function onThumbsDelete(evt:ThumbDeleteEvent)
This causes a null pointer error because myevent is null:
public function onThumbsDelete(evt:Event):void{
     var myevent:TumbDeleteEvent = (evt as ThumbDeleteEvent);
     var files:String = myevent.files;
Here is what I see when I put a break point in and debug it:
I tried upgrading my event extender as you suggested, that had no effect.  I removed the dot notation in the type and it does the exact same thing I.E. dispatching class:
                                             parentApplication.dispatchEvent(new ThumbDeleteEvent("thumbsDeleted", files));   or
        parentApplication.dispatchEvent(new ThumbDeleteEvent(ThumbDeleteEvent.THUMBS_DELETED, files));
and receiving class:
     parentApplication.addEventListener("thumbsDeleted", onThumbsDelete);
I really appreciate your help, I am baffled by this, I have tried everything I can think of for two days and I am ready to start throwing things.