Heartbreaking: 10-year-old boy commits suicide after 2 years of relentless physical, verbal bullying



Sammy Teusch — a 10-year-old boy with a huge, infectious grin — was laid to rest this week in his hometown of Greenfield, Indiana.

Image source: WTHR-TV video screenshot, composite

Sammy's parents said he took his own life on the morning of May 5 — a heartbreaking end after two years of relentless verbal bullying that recently became physical and was just too much for him to bear.

The bullying mostly was over his glasses and his teeth.

'He was beat up on the school bus, and the kids broke his glasses and everything, and I called the school, and I'm like, "What are you doing about this? It keeps getting worse and worse and worse ..."'

"He was my little boy. He was my baby. He was the youngest one," Sammy's mom, Nichole Teusch, tearfully told WTHR-TV.

Image source: WTHR-TV video screenshot

"I held him in my arms. I did the thing no father should ever have to do, and any time I close my eyes, it's all I can see," his dad, Sam Teusch, shared with the station though sobs.

Image source: WTHR-TV video screenshot

Sammy's family told WTHR others bullied him right up to the night before his death, an ordeal that commenced last year in elementary school and continued this year at Greenfield Intermediate School.

Image source: WTHR-TV video screenshot

"They were making fun of him for his glasses in the beginning, then on to make fun of his teeth," his dad noted to the station. "It went on for a long time."

Then the bullying got physical, WTHR said.

"He was beat up on the school bus, and the kids broke his glasses and everything, and I called the school, and I'm like, 'What are you doing about this? It keeps getting worse and worse and worse, and it's not getting any better. In fact, it's getting worse,'" Sammy's dad added to the station.

Image source: WTHR-TV video screenshot

He added to WTHR that he contacted the school 20 times about the bullying: "They knew this was going on. They knew this was going on."

But district Superintendent Harold Olin told the station neither Sammy nor his parents ever submitted a bullying report, and while school administrators and a counselor had regular conversations with the family, he can't share the content of those conversations.

Sammy's family explained to WTHR that the bullying reached beyond the school and the bus and found its way to Snapchat, despite Sammy's parents granting him limited access to his phone.

"'I'm going to beat you up. I'm going to beat you up when you get to school.' Saying mean things about his [mom], which would really, really set him off," Sammy's dad recounted to the station.

Sadly, in spite of frequent reinforcement from those who love him, Sammy's family told WTHR he became withdrawn and stopped opening up. They told the station they believe Sammy's suicide was due to fear of going back to school following an incident in the restroom the prior week and the constant harassment.

Now there is a void in the Teusch home that can never be filled.

"I always tell the kids because Sammy and his sister went to bed first because they were younger, and telling them they had to brush their teeth to get ready for bed and having him not be there to hug before bed," Sammy's mom, inconsolable, shared with WTHR.

Word spread about Sammy after his death, and WTHR reported in a follow-up story that more than 100 motorcycle riders drove side-by-side down New Road in Greenfield to Brandywine Church for Sammy's services earlier this week.

The station said most of the motorcyclists didn't know Sammy — but were touched by his story.

Image source: WTHR-TV video screenshot

In the church's auditorium, loved ones shared memories of Sammy, the station said, adding that afterward Sammy's relatives carried his casket out of the church and placed it into a hearse.

Image source: WTHR-TV video screenshot

Everything culminated at Greenfield cemetery, where WTHR said Sammy is now at rest.

Image source: WTHR-TV video screenshot

The station said Sammy's family and some of his classmates surrounded his casket as the pastor read a final prayer.

Image source: WTHR-TV video screenshot

Image source: WTHR-TV video screenshot

WTHR said a candlelight vigil is planned for Friday between 8 and 10 p.m. at Depot Park in Greenfield if weather permits.

Help in the face of bullying

The station noted the following resources if you or a child you know is being bullied:

The American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry has a full bullying resource center. Stomp Out Bullying has resources for parents of children who are being bullied.

Safekids.com has resources focused on cyberbulling, which can follow kids even outside of school.

If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. It's available 24/7.

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Blaze News original: Mob rules — pro-Hamas campus protesters' most disgusting behavior caught on video



Mobs of pro-Palestinian, Hamas-loving, Israel-hating protesters have wreaked havoc on dozens of college campuses across America, with the most intense displays taking place in the last week.

Practically without exception, they hide their faces with masks and hoods — curiously, just like violent leftists Antifa — and wear keffiyeh scarves to visually announce their allegiance to the "intifada revolution."

They continually call for the destruction of Israel with chants such as "there is only one solution" and "from the river to the sea" — which can't be very endearing for Jewish students to hear.

They rarely act alone — and get noticeably braver and more strident when they mob around and gang up on individuals. Again, just like Antifa.

Arguably worst of all, they bully and intimidate anyone who stands in their way — and as usual, pretty much without exception as part of a mob.

The following are some of their worst behaviors caught on video.

Columbia mob manhandles two students who try to protect Hamilton Hall

Rory Wilson and his friend Charles Beck stood in front of the doors of Hamilton Hall — the target of a pro-Palestinian student takeover.

"It was a matter of trying to stand for what I believe is right, even if ultimately we weren't able to stop the mob," Rory Wilson — a Christian who has some Jewish lineage and Israeli relatives — told Fox News.

One thing the pro-Hamas, bullying students love to do is line up in pathways and doorways on campus to prevent other students from passing through — a power move that shows who's boss that doesn't seem to elicit much pushback.

This time Wilson and Beck tried the same thing — just the two of them. Here's how that played out:

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The mob soon dragged Beck away, and Wilson stood his ground for a while until things got too dangerous, the cable network said.

Wilson added to Fox News that an aging leftist chewed him out, too: "She was harassing me the entire time. She was attacking me, saying, ‘Do you guys think you’re white saviors? Check your white male privilege. Who do you think you are? This isn't doing anything.’"

UCLA pro-Palestinians nauseatingly prevent free movement on campus

When the mob rules, its members apparently get to decide who gets to go where. Here's what that looked like, over and over again, in chilling instances caught on video at the University of California, Los Angeles:

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Same student, different instance — again just trying to walk on campus:

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KCAL-TV took a look at the human blockades:

Their territorial bent wasn't reserved for students, either.

Check out UCLA freedom fighters gang up on and press up against an independent journalist, preventing him from moving an inch. By the end, it looks like an advantage of 15 or so against one. So stunning and brave:

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Unofficial gatekeepers block stairs with metal gates — and even hand out wristbands to those deemed worthy to pass through like ticket-takers. Where are the authorities?

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The following videos lay bare the privilege on overdrive that the pro-Hamas protesters at UCLA exhibit — and kudos to this guy, who calls them out and gets it all on camera:

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'Israel must fall!' 'Long live the intifada!'

How do you imagine Jewish students must feel if they're courageous enough to go outside and walk to class?

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Or here:

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An Israeli flag infuriates thug at UC Berkeley

Watch the action here at the University of California, Berkeley — you know, the epicenter of free speech and tolerance — when a violent male lays his eyes on an Israeli flag:

'It's the cool thing to be against Israel, to be against the Jewish people'

A Jewish freshman at the University of Wisconsin-Madison told MacIver News Service that he's feeling "a little scared" in the face of the pro-Palestinian protests happening on campus.

He told the outlet when he tried to document what was happening with his phone, "I was surrounded by 10 people with scarves, jackets, and they were pushing me around, getting very close. ... As a Jewish student here, I feel that it's the cool thing to be against Israel, to be against the Jewish people. And I see it happening more and more throughout classes, I see it happening with faculty and staff, and I think it's terrible that the campus hasn't done anything about it. I'm all for free speech; I'm all for the freedom to come together and stand up for what you believe in, but everything with the right intentions and keeping everybody safe."

Watch what happens soon after when pro-Palestinian freedom fighters notice the kid is freely talking to a journalist:

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The journalist confronts their lack of civility — and their responses are predictable. But hey, at least they're not covering their faces:

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Here's more UWM fun, courtesy of MacIver News Service:

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School district fires superintendent over claims she harassed softball players who didn't clap loudly enough for her daughter



A San Diego-area school district fired its superintendent over claims she harassed high school softball players who didn't clap loudly enough for her daughter at an awards ceremony.

What are the details?

The Poway Unified School District voted unanimously Tuesday to terminate Superintendent Marian Kim Phelps, KNSD-TV reported.

The station said an independent investigation commenced last year after parents and students accused Phelps of harassing members of Del Norte High School's softball team.

Students told KNSD Phelps contacted players late at night after the awards ceremony and threatened seniors' graduation privileges if they failed to apologize for not clapping for her daughter. The station said the allegations first surfaced at a Poway Board meeting, but parents said they alerted the district months earlier.

Image source: KNBC-TV video screenshot

In addition, a Del Norte High softball player filed a lawsuit against Phelps and the district over the alleged bullying, claiming emotional distress, violation of free speech, and harassment, KNSD said.

More from the station:

It alleges Phelps orchestrated an internal investigation of the plaintiff, whom Phelps accused of bullying her daughter — the two players were both pitchers and competed for playing time. The plaintiff believes the investigation was meant to prevent her from pitching or playing softball altogether, according to the lawsuit. Jane Doe was ultimately barred from all extracurricular activities in the 2023-2024 school year, including sports, school-sponsored social events and graduation commencement.

Phelps has denied all allegations, KNSD reported, noting that she issued the following statement earlier in the process: “I've never threatened any student. I never would. I've never talked to any student about making threats about them not graduating. All those accusations are completely false and fabricated.”

Attorney Justin Reden represents the Del Norte High School softball player and her family who filed the lawsuit last November, and he told the station that no student should have to go through what his client endured.

Reden added to KNSD: “I think that the district is going to need to dismantle itself at the administrative level and rebuild."

Parent Melinda Huntoon told the station that "it should not take a year with the knowledge that they had. There was just so much evidence from the start to show that this person should not be in this position of power."

School board President Michelle O'Connor-Ratcliff said in an email, KNSD reported, that "based on her conduct, as revealed to the board through the investigation, the board has lost all confidence and trust in Dr. Phelps’ ability to continue to serve as superintendent, as well as in her ability to continue to work collaboratively with the board as part of Poway Unified’s governance team."

O'Connor-Ratcliff also said the "investigation brought to light previously unknown evidence from witnesses with direct first-hand knowledge that contradicted Dr. Phelps’ statements and assertions to the Board, District staff, and the public," the station reported.

A district spokeswoman added to KNSD that Tuesday would be Phelps' last day, and she won't receive a payout for the balance of her contract since she was terminated "for cause."

The station explained that while the district no longer employs Phelps, she's still a parent of a student in the district, and there are no restrictions on her parental activities.

KNSD said it tried reaching out to Phelps for comment but didn't receive a response.

The station said Greg Mizel will continue to serve as interim superintendent during the transition period.

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'I was horrified by what I saw': Video shows 5th-grade girl beating up 7-year-old boy on school bus — and parents are livid



Livid parents are speaking out in regard to a video showing a 5th-grade girl beating up a 7-year-old boy on a school bus in Michigan earlier this month.

What's the background?

WNDU-TV said the March 4 incident between the Ballard Elementary School students took place on the “PM route home" in Niles. The city is in Michigan's southwest corner and is about a half-hour drive from the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana.

WSBT noted that the two-minute video is filled with both students hollering profanity at each other, and the boy tried to hit the girl's phone out of her hand, after which the girl jumped up and punched the boy two to three times.

Following continued arguing, the girl punched the boy again for about eight to nine seconds, WSBT said.

WNDU said the video showed the girl "punching the smaller, defenseless male student more than 18 times in the head."

WSBT said multiple parents have expressed concern for their children’s safety — with some alleging other children also have had altercations with the girl in question.

WNDU said it reached out to the apparent parents of the two children but heard back only from the girl's father, who said, “I don’t want to talk to you.” WBND-LD reported that the father indicated that his daughter has been expelled.

Niles Community Schools Superintendent Daniel Applegate said that while there were two adults aboard the bus at the time of the incident — an experienced driver helping a first-time driver with directions and stop locations — they weren't aware of what was going on "due to the noise throughout the bus and their focus on route and drop-offs," WSBT said.

Brittany Ottinger told WNDU her son was sitting next to the boy the girl was hitting and that her son's "head got pushed up against the window,” after which he ended up with a bruised eye.

“He was terrified to go back to school," Ottinger added to WNDU. She also told the station she wasn't informed about the incident until days later.

“I didn’t want to send him back to school, but I had no choice," Ottinger also told WNDU. "And I felt bad as a mom for encouraging him to go back to school."

Niles police are investigating the incident and working with the bus garage and the school system, WNDU added.

Parents speak out

Parents gathered Wednesday to speak about the incident and what they say is a bullying epidemic at the school that isn't being addressed, WBND reported.

T.J. Camp, the father of the boy who was repeatedly hit by the girl, said his children won't be returning to Ballard Elementary, the administration's statements aren't true, and his family is considering legal options, the station reported.

“I was horrified by what I saw," Camp said, according to WBND. "The school told me there were two adults on the bus, a driver, and a monitor. As you can see in the video, nothing was done to stop the attack on my child."

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School Choice Can Be Your Hall Pass Out Of Increasingly Violent Classrooms

[rebelmouse-proxy-image https://thefederalist.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Screenshot-2024-01-23-at-6.29.54 PM-1200x675.png crop_info="%7B%22image%22%3A%20%22https%3A//thefederalist.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Screenshot-2024-01-23-at-6.29.54%5Cu202fPM-1200x675.png%22%7D" expand=1]Schools don't just tolerate bad behavior -- they're fostering more of it with discipline models like 'restorative justice.'

Family of 12-year-old girl, who died by suicide from bullying, receives largest settlement of  bullying case in New Jersey history



The family of a 12-year-old girl who died by suicide after being relentlessly bullied has been awarded the largest settlement of a bullying case in New Jersey history.

On June 14, 2017, sixth-grader Mallory Grossman committed suicide after being bullied by classmates at Copeland Middle School in Rockaway Township, N.J.

Some classmates reportedly asked the struggling 12-year-old, "When are you going to kill yourself?"

Court documents reveal that Mallory's parents had multiple meetings with school officials before her suicide regarding their daughter being bullied. The parents allegedly even met with school officials on the day that Mallory took her own life.

Dianne Grossman described her daughter's abuse in June of 2018, "We used to say, 'Go jump in the lake.' That was a funny thing to say. Now our kids are saying, 'Go kill yourself.' We've got to recognize that that type of language has to be intolerable."

Grossman added, "The poor behavior and the poor decisions that these children make, it's still continuing. These children have not changed."

Mallory's parents say that their daughter had her chair constantly kicked while she was in class.

"Putting an end to bullying is not something achieved by individuals operating alone, it is done by a community banding together," states the anti-bullying website dedicated to Mallory. "We achieve this by unifying students, teachers, kids, and adults alike, against bullying and anyone who seeks to make less of, or cause harm to others."

The parents allege that school officials advised them not to lodge a formal complaint during the meeting.

Dianne Grossman described Mallory as a "quiet child," who was a gymnast and a cheerleader who "loved the outdoors."

This week, the family was awarded $9.1 million settlement from the school district — the largest payout in New Jersey history for a bullying case.

The deceased teen's family support legislation known as "Mallory's Law," which states: "Revises provisions required in school district's anti-bullying policy; provides for civil liability of parent of minor adjudicated delinquent for cyber-harassment or harassment; and increases certain fines against parents."

Grossman family attorney Bruce Nagle said, "This settlement is one more step in dealing with this avoidable tragedy and I hope that it sends a clear message to all schools around the country that our children must be protected from the horrors of school bullying."

Dianne Grossman told NorthJersey.com, "Seth and I are satisfied with the settlement, ready to put this part behind us and move forward, continuing to lend our voice to the epidemic that is stealing our children’s future."

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Attorneys say Rockaway School District settles $9.1M cyberbullying lawsuit www.youtube.com

New York bullies bust a boy's nose after allegedly luring him to park in his Spider-Man costume



A 15-year-old boy from Hudson Falls, New York, was reportedly lured by bullies in his Spider-Man costume to a local park, where he was savagely attacked and left with a broken nose.

Footage of the attack has emerged online, showing middle schooler Aydin Pedone dressed as the iconic costumed hero, fielding insults and jeers from passersby.

One classmate can be heard asking whether Pedone's "spider sense" is "tingling."

Amid the insults, a girl in red approaches Pedone, winds up and attempts to hit him in the face with an open-handed strike. While Pedone deftly dodges his attacker's first attempt, she lands her second with a crack.

Pedone staggers back, holding himself up by a metal gate, as the girl strides away, laughing. He ultimately yanks off his mask, revealing a bloody mess of a nose. Though wounded, he did not reciprocate with violence.

The Hudson Falls Police Department confirmed in a statement that around 4:30 p.m. on June 21, the boy was struck in the face by a 14-year-old girl and "sustained significant injury to his nose, which will require further medical intervention."

The 14-year-old girl was later arrested and charged with one count of assault in the second degree, a class D felony. She will appear at the Washington County Probation Department at a later date.

The boy's mother, Shellie Pedone, noted that his affinity for the Marvel character has elicited scorn and abuse from other kids, particularly after he started the sixth grade, reported the New York Post.

"My son was attacked for the purpose of bored teenage entertainment, targeted for being different than them, and viciously attacked because of having the courage to stand out from the crowd and be himself," Shellie Pedone, the boy's mother, wrote on Facebook. "He has that kind of heart that only sees the good in people. Is this the kind of kid that deserves to have his nose broken, unprovoked, and witnessed by nearly a dozen peers standing around to watch, record and laugh at him?"

Support has poured in from others in the community who recognize Pedone as a "gentle and loving kid" who had taken to wearing the costume to advocate against bullying at school.

An individual identified as Edward Anthony started a fundraiser for the lad to "show Aydin that he is a true hero," adding, "Aydin is a very kind kid, who loves comics, videos games, and cosplay. He is regularly bullied in school, and this situation is absolutely unacceptable."

The GoFundMe has already raised over $11,455 to send the boy and his family to the Avengers Campus at Disney California Adventure, where Spider-Man is a featured hero. Additional proceeds will allegedly go toward funding the 15-year-old's martial arts training, such that he'll know how best to respond to the next punch thrown his way.

"I am beyond overjoyed with all that has happened this week," Shellie Pedone wrote on Facebook. "Seeing my son's true spirit shine and fly high while crawling out of such a dark hole is a long overdue dream come true. ... The world can be beautiful, and it extends much farther than within the walls of a toxic school environment. I am beyond grateful for all the positive that has come out of this experience."