Punishment equal for aggressor, victim in Jefferson City bullying incident

A Jefferson City parent reached out to ABC 17 News this week after she said her son was not just bullied, but assaulted on school property.

The boy was then suspended for defending himself despite having a clean record, and got the same punishment as his attacker.

Administrators met with the family Thursday, and a lot was brought to the table, including a surveillance video the school hasn’t let the parents see yet.

School officials said they are going to get that video for them, however.

The student’s mother reached out to ABC 17 News fearing the district might not take her seriously after her son was assaulted in a stairway.

She took him to the emergency room where doctors believed he had a concussion and a sprained shoulder.

Just looking at the medical report Thursday was still difficult for her.

“I cried, I’m a mom. It’s like, you know, this shouldn’t be happening in school,” said mother Michele Williams.

Williams said her son Anthony was pushed down a stairway and had his head shoved into a concrete wall.

When he fought back, he received the same punishment as his aggressor did, per school policy.

Williams said she thinks bullying is a major problem in the district.

“Oh I think it’s huge, I mean just from what Anthony has told me what he has seen.”

Administrators said it’s a challenge they’re continuing to face head-on. All teachers have been trained on what to look for and how to spot bullying.

All buildings are getting upgraded security with more cameras.

Assistant Superintendent Tammy Ridgeway said being both a mom and administrator, hearing stories like Williams’ are hard to take.

“I don’t want any kids bullied in our school. I have three kids, I know what it’s like, but as an administrator and teachers we look through the whole situation and we gain all of the information because it’s important we make the best decision we can with all of the information we have, because everybody is somebody’s kid, and we need to do what we can to keep all of our kids safe,” said Ridgeway.

Williams’ son is going back to school Friday and administrators said his teachers will be helping him catch up on missed work.