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By Mark E. Vogler
A 13-year-old girl with a learning disability was bullied and beaten by another girl in a gym class at the Saugus Middle-High School on Monday while classmates cheered and videotaped the incident on their cell phones, according to the girl’s mother.
“Nobody aided her or protected her – nobody did anything to help her. They all just cheered and took pictures and video,” the girl’s mother told The Saugus Advocate this week.
“Beating up kids and making videos of it isn’t okay. There needs to be consequences for something as horrible as this. Even with the videotaping, those kids need to be disciplined,” she said. “It was a vicious and violent attack. My daughter suffered a mild concussion and was traumatized. She was kicked in the head, kicked in the knee, kicked in the back and kicked in the stomach. The girl who did this ripped out part of my daughter’s hair.”
The Saugus Advocate has not named the mother of the eighth-grade girl who was beaten in order to protect her privacy as a juvenile and victim.
In an interview Wednesday, the mother said she is not satisfied with the way school officials have responded in the aftermath of the incident. “I do intend to press charges. I will go to the Juvenile Department at Lynn District Court and file the papers,” she said.
“I care about my daughter’s wellbeing and safety. I don’t feel she’s safe right now. I need to protect my daughter. I just feel criminal charges need to be filed. A slap on the wrist isn’t going to do it,” she said.
Meanwhile, videos of the beating – some of which were sent to the victim – have been circulated throughout town. It’s gotten the attention of several town officials, some who say the beating and other recent incidents demonstrate the need for Saugus Public Schools to hire a School Resource Officer (SRO).
“I was disgusted to watch the video of the brawl at the SMHS three weeks ago which was very hushed up, then to see this latest fight Monday it brings into question what’s going on there,” Selectman Anthony Cogliano said.
“The behavior is unacceptable. With all the talk lately about an SRO, these latest incidents confirm the need to hire that position in our schools,” Cogliano said. “As a parent of a child that was bullied at SHS, this fight hit home for me. The girl that initiated the assault as well as the others who would rather videotape someone taking a vicious beating should all be suspended from school.”
So far, Saugus Public School officials have not commented on the incident or the video. They have not responded to the newspaper.
“It’s concerning,” Saugus Police Chief Michael Ricciardelli said of the video he viewed. He confirmed the mother came down to the Public Safety Building to file a police report about the incident.
“We have no plans to file charges. We have been in contact with the school and the plan is to deal with it internally. Typically, this is the type of thing that gets handled internally,” the chief said.
“Fights happen in school,” Chief Ricciardelli said, noting that police respond to fewer than 10 fights a year. “I don’t mean to make light of it, but it tends to get more attention with a video involved.”
Board of Selectmen Chair Debra Panetta was among the town officials who were contacted about the incident and received a video of it. “I reached out to some of the School Committee members about it,” Panetta said after Tuesday night’s (March 5) Board of Selectmen’s meeting.
“I’m for anything we can do to stop the bullying. I just want something to be done. The School Committee needs to deal with this. I believe the administration is handling it,” Panetta said. “There should be zero tolerance for bullying.”
The mother of the 13-year-old girl who was beaten said she doesn’t think that school officials have done enough. “I think it’s been handled very poorly. It’s like they just want to make it disappear. It’s like they’re hiding from the situation. But this is something they need to address,” she said.
