Leftists tried to spin Dagny Benedict's suicide as the result of anti-LGBT bullying. The truth is far more tragic.



A so-called "nonbinary" teen died in Oklahoma last month after a fight at school. Activists seized upon the tragedy for political advantage, suggesting that Dagny Benedict was killed by anti-LGBT bullies or at the very least as the result of anti-LGBT bullying, smearing innocent teens in the process.

That narrative crumbled over time, although questions remained about Benedict's life and death.

New details have emerged, both in the Oklahoma medical examiner's full autopsy report this week and about her family, indicating not only that LGBT activists were entirely off the mark but that the truth is far worse than many had imagined.

The false narrative

Dagny Benedict was a 16-year-old sophomore at Owasso High School in Tulsa who allegedly identified as "nonbinary" and sometimes went by the name "Nex." She got into a fight with other students in the girls' washroom on Feb. 7. The next day she perished.

LGBT activists and other leftists seized upon the story of Benedict's demise to suggest that conservatives and other critics of gender ideology had cultivated an atmosphere in which it became acceptable to bully non-straight students; that Benedict had been attacked because of her so-called gender identity; and that the girl possibly even died from her injuries.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) managed to capture the narrative in a single tweet, writing, "Nex Benedict’s death from a brutal assault in their high school bathroom is outrageous and heartbreaking. The anti-trans fervor fueled by extreme Republicans across the country is having deadly consequences for our children. We must stand up against anti-trans hate."

Blaze News previously reported that Tori Cooper, a leading campaigner for the LGBT activist group Human Rights Campaign, specifically intimated that Benedict was attacked over her "nonbinary" identification.

Cooper also pinned blame on so-called "exremist anti-LGBTQ+ hate accounts, like online troll Chaya Raichik, the woman behind 'Libs of Tiktok'" for "perpetuating a vile and hateful narrative that is permitting these types of public attacks."

The false narrative surrounding the teen's death was embraced high and low, with even President Joe Biden entertaining the notion that her fate was linked to bullying, stating, "Bullying is hurtful and cruel, and no one should face the bullying that Nex did."

This preferred narrative began to collapse after bodycam footage released by the Owasso Police Department showed Benedict admitting that she was not the target of violence but rather the very person who started the Feb. 7 fight.

Benedict also says in the video that she started the altercation because her targets mocked how she laughed, saying nothing of any anti-LGBT hostilities.

The fight was also revealed not to have been what killed Benedict. Preliminary autopsy results noted that Benedict "did not die as a result of trauma."

The autopsy results

One week after Oklahoma prosecutors indicated they had found no basis on which to file charges in the death of the teen, the Oklahoma medical examiner released the full autopsy report regarding Benedict's death.

KTUL-TV reported that the report concluded that Benedict had killed herself by taking a lethal dose of two different medications: diphenhydramine, the allergy medication also known as Benadryl, and the anti-depressant fluoxetine, also known as Prozac. Apparently she had a "massive" amount of the allergy drug in her blood.

Forensic pathologist Daniel Schultz, the president of Final Diagnosis Inc. in Tampa, Florida, reviewed the findings and told KTUL, "There's no question this was an overdose by a combination of diphenhydramine and fluoxetine."

"Essentially the dose to do this in some ways implies intent," added Schultz. "This is not an accidental type of thing."

Traces of cough suppressant and the anti-psychotic drug quetiapine were also found in her blood.

The autopsy report further stated, "Past medical history included constipation, bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety, self-harm (cutting), chronic tobacco abuse, and chronic marijuana abuse. Handwritten notes that are suggestive of self-harm were found in the decedent's room by family and provided to law enforcement."

The pedophile father

Tulsa County District Attorney Stephen Kunzweiler revealed on March 21 that investigators discovered notes written by Benedict related to her suicide.

"The notes do not make any reference to the earlier fight or difficulties at school," wrote Kunzweiler. "The precise contents of the suicide note are a personal matter in which the family will have to address within the privacy of their own lives."

RedState highlighted there had been a possible hint about what Kunzweiler may have been referencing buried in a Feb. 21 Washington Post article. The article noted, "Nex's biological mother was among the mourners [at Benedict's funeral]; their father, who is in prison for abuse, was not."

Photojournalist and reporter Jeremy Lee Quinn pulled the thread earlier this month, writing, "Benedict was a survivor of child abuse."

Quinn referenced a Feb. 9 Facebook post from Benedict's aunt, who apparently wrote, "The details are still a ongoing investigation so we won't know until later but I will say justice will be served for the people that did this along side with her monster of a father who's already in prison."

The aunt said in another post, "yes [Benedict's father has] been in prison for molesting/raping his daughter. Got out on parole and was arrested yesterday."

Quinn wrote, "Nex's aunt 'disowned her brother' and posted publicly about the abuse following the passing of Nex, who Aunt Ashley says she only ever knew as Dagny."

The disowned brother, Benedict's father, is reportedly James Everette Hughes, a 39-year-old registered sex offender.

Court documents indicate Hughes raped his daughter, referred to in court documents as D.H., in 2017. His sex offender registration form indicates that Benedict was 9 when her father molested her over the course of months.

Sebastian County Sheriff's Office records indicate it wasn't until 2019 that Hughes was arrested in Arkansas for sexual assault of a child under the age of 14.

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RedState reported that one of the witnesses, the victim's grandmother Sue Benedict, later adopted the child.

Hughes ultimately pleaded guilty to sexual assault in the second degree and received five years in prison. He was arrested again by the Little Rock Police Department two weeks prior to Benedict's suicide for failing to register as a sex offender or reporting an address change.

The rapist who traumatized Benedict and apparently played a major factor in her tragic end will next appear in court in Pulaski County, Arkansas, on May 2.

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Leftist narrative around Dagny Benedict's tragic death begins to crumble under scrutiny



Dagny Benedict was a sophomore at Owasso High School in Tulsa who allegedly identified as "nonbinary." Benedict was involved in an altercation with other students on Feb. 7. The next day, she died unexpectedly.

Democrats and LGBT activists rushed to exploit the 16-year-old student's tragic passing, casting it both as a result of anti-LGBT bullying that supposedly culminated in a fatal fight and Republican policies concerning bathroom use.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), for instance, suggested that the girl died from a "brutal assault" and that the "anti-trans fervor fueled by extreme Republicans across the country is having deadly consequences for our children."

Tori Cooper, a leading campaigner for the LGBT activist group Human Rights Campaign, intimated Benedict was attacked over her "nonbinary" identification. Cooper also pinned blame on so-called "[e]xremist anti-LGBTQ+ hate accounts, like online troll Chaya Raichick, the woman behind 'Libs of Tiktok'" for "perpetuating a vile and hateful narrative that is permitting these types of public attacks."

Despite the confidence with which it has been advanced, the left's preferred narrative has crumbled under scrutiny.

Bodycam footage released Friday by the Owasso Police Department shows Benedict readily admit that she was not the target of violence but rather the initiator of the altercation.

When detailing the alleged bullying a trio of freshman girls subjected her to, Benedict says in the video that they mocked her clothing choice and laughed — making no mention of any anti-LGBT hostilities.

Police have since indicated that Benedict "did not die as a result of trauma," releasing security footage showing Benedict leave the school under her "own power."

The incident

The OPD indicated that a fight took place in a school restroom on Feb 7. It was ultimately broken up by other students and a school staff member who was supervising outside the bathrooms.

All students involved in the altercation "walked under their own power to the assistant principal's office and nurse's office," said police. In the office, school administrators contacted parents and took student statements but apparently refrained from contacting the relevant authorities about the brawl.

The school did, however, have its registered nurse assess the health of all persons involved in the altercation. Despite determining an ambulance was not necessary for Benedict, the nurse recommended the teen visit a medical facility for further examination.

Sue Benedict, the decedent's biological grandmother and guardian, called the Owasso Police Department just after 3:30 p.m. on the day of the incident requesting that an officer respond to Bailey Medical Center concerning an alleged assault that took place at Owasso High School West Campus.

Referring to Dagny Benedict as her "daughter" and employing feminine pronouns in reference to the teen, Sue Benedict indicated she wanted to press charges against the other students involved in the altercation.

In the company of her guardian at the hospital, Dagny Benedict told an officer that after stacking chairs around 1 p.m., she and her friend went to the nearby bathroom. Security footage appears to show six girls enter the bathroom in short succession ahead of the incident.

"I was talking to my friend. They were talking with their friends, and we were laughing, and they had said something like, 'Why do they laugh like that?'" Benedict told the officer. "And they were talking about us in front of us. And so I went up there and poured water on them."

Benedict confirmed to the officer that she had used a water bottle to soak the other girls who in turn allegedly responded with force.

"They came at me. They grabbed at my hair. I grabbed onto them. I threw one of them into a paper towel dispenser, and then they got my legs out from under me and got me on the ground," continued Benedict.

The officer suggested that by virtue of Benedict having allegedly started the fight, pressing charges might not have resulted in a cut-and-clear victory.

OPD 2024-3316 Community Releaseyoutu.be

The next day, Owasso Fire Department medics were called to the scene of a medical emergency involving Benedict.

Sue Benedict noted in her 911 call that the teen's eyes were rolled backward, she was breathing shallowly, and both her hands were curled. Sue Benedict also made passing mention of the use of anxiety medication but suggested the teen was not on any medication at the moment.

The teen was taken to St. Francis Pediatric Emergency Center in Tulsa where she later died. Her funeral was held on Feb. 15.

The OPD stressed after Benedict's death that it was investigating the incident "thoroughly" and looking for possible evidence of felony murder.

While the OPD initially indicated it was unclear whether the medical emergency was related to the Feb. 7 incident, police noted on Feb. 21 that preliminary autopsy results found that Benedict "did not die as a result of trauma." The OPD did note, however, that "any further comments on the cause of death are currently pending until toxicology results and other ancillary testing results are received."

Owaso Public Schools released the following statement: "The Owasso Police Department has notified district leaders of the death of an Owasso High School student. The student's name and cause of death have not yet been made public. As this is an active police investigation, we will have no additional comment at this time. Further inquiries should be directed to the Owasso Police Department."

Purposing tragedy

The possibilities that Benedict's tragic end had nothing to do with hate and possibly nothing to do with an altercation between the high-school girls she allegedly provoked have not gotten in the way of activists making the most out of their preferred narrative.

Freedom Oklahoma, an LGBT activist group, said in a statement using the teen's nickname, "We know that Nex Benedict, the student who died, faces being deadnamed and misgendered in death, after a horrific attack that killed Nex, possibly because of Nex's TGNC+ identity."

Freedom Oklahoma hedged its bets, adding, "[W]hether Nex died as a direct result of injuries sustained in the brutal hate-motivated attack at school or not, Nex's death is a result of being the target of physical and emotional harm because of who Nex was."

The Human Rights Campaign — which has joined Freedom Oklahoma in painting Chaya Raichik as a key villain in the story of Benedict's demise — claimed, "Nex's death also comes at a time when extremist politicians have weaponized trans and gender-expansive identities for political gain, stoking hate and discrimination through their vile rhetoric."

Tactfully campaigning off the incomplete story of Benedict's death, the HRC stressed, "We must demand better from our elected officials and reject harmful anti-transgender legislation at the local, state and federal levels, while also considering every possible way to make ending this violence a reality."

The Independent published a piece titled, "Oklahoma banned trans students from bathrooms. Now Nex Benedict is dead after a fight at school." In the piece, Benedict's grandmother claimed that the decedent became the target of bullying after Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) ratified legislation requiring students to use bathrooms corresponding to their biological sex.

KABC-TV was one of the many media outfits to further insinuate a link between Republican policies pushing back against radical social constructivism in schools and Benedict's death.

Against the backdrop of the teen's untimely death, KABC highlighted how Stitt has "banned the use of nonbinary gender markers on IDs, restricted gender-affirming care for trans youth and banned transgender girls from participating in girls' sports," intimating a possible connection.

On Saturday, a few hundred LGBT activists flocked to Oklahoma City to remember Benedict and use her death for political purposes.

Bryan Paddock, one of the co-founders of Rural Oklahoma Pride, told the Oklahoman, "This is us taking a stand for that person as well as our community. We need change in Oklahoma. We need change in the United States. That youth was not protected as they should have been and there's so much legislation out there that is seeking to erase or dispose of our community."

Students at Owasso High School staged a walkout Monday in protest of a supposedly pervasive culture of bullying they have been led to believe resulted in Benedict's death, reported NBC News.

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Retired pope asks to be forgiven any wrongdoing in handling of Catholic Church's sex abuses



On Tuesday, retired Pope Benedict XVI asked to be forgiven for any “grievous faults” he may have been guilty of while handling clergy sex abuse cases during his tenure as archbishop.

The Associated Press reports that while he did seek to absolve himself, Pope Benedict did not admit to any specific instance of wrongdoing after an independent report scrutinized his handling of sex abuse cases while he served as the archbishop of Munich, Germany.

“I have had great responsibilities in the Catholic Church,” the retired pope said, “All the greater is my pain for the abuses and the errors that occurred in those different places during the time of my mandate.”

The 94-year-old retired pope made this statement in response to a German law firm’s January report, commissioned by the German Catholic Church, to investigate the handling of sex abuse cases by the Munich Archdiocese between 1945 and 2019.

Pope Benedict XVI served as head of the German archdiocese — as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger — from 1977 to 1982.

The law firm’s report faults how Benedict handled four cases of sex abuse while he served as archbishop. It accuses him of misconduct for not restricting the ministry of the priests who were found criminally guilty of sex abuse.

The report also found that Benedict’s predecessors and successors were at fault. It is estimated that there were at least 497 victims of abuse over the decades being investigated. It found there to be at least 235 suspected perpetrators.

Responding to the report, Pope Benedict’s legal team said, “As an archbishop, Cardinal Ratzinger was not involved in any cover-up of acts abuse.”

The retired pope’s legal team asserted that the report’s authors provided no evidence that then-Cardinal Ratzinger was aware of the criminal history of the priests in question.

In his personal response, Benedict noted his meeting with abuse victims while serving as pope.

Pope Benedict said, “I have seen first hand the effects of a most grievous fault, and I have come to understand that we ourselves are drawn into this grievous fault whenever we neglect it or fail to confront it with the necessary decisiveness and responsibility, as too often happened and continues to happen.”

He continued, “As in those meetings, once again I can only express to all the victims of sexual abuse my profound shame, my deep sorrow, and my heartfelt request for forgiveness.”

Reflecting on his legacy, he said, “Quite soon, I shall find myself before the final judge of my life. Even though, as I look back on my long life, I can have great reason for fear and trembling, I am nonetheless of good cheer, for I trust firmly that the Lord is not only the just judge, but also the friend and brother who himself has already suffered for my shortcomings.”

As head of the Vatican, Pope Benedict was the first pope to meet with victims of abuse, instituted policies to punish priests who raped children, and defrocked nearly 400 priests for abuse.