America's bullying epidemic may have just claimed another victim. This time it's a 12 year old boy.
According to his family, Bailey O'Neill, who turned 12 on Saturday, was jumped by two classmates during recess at the Darby Township School in Philadelphia last January, suffering a concussion and a broken nose.
Bailey had been knocked down during the fight, his father told NBC, and from then on something with the sixth grader wasn't right. The day after the fight O'Neill began to suffer violent seizures, forcing doctors to place him under a medically induced coma.
But Delaware County District Attorney Jack Whelan has counseled restraint until the details of the case are fully investigated.
Whelan said that at the least there could be possible simple assault charges filed against one of the two students involved. Currently he is working to determine if bullying was a factor in the case whilst he waits on autopsy results to figure out what killed this apparently healthy boy.
'I would hate to see anyone rush to judgment before really knowing the complete story of what occurred,' Whelan reportedly said.
But according NBC, Joy Fecanin, the boy's grandmother, has lost her patience. 'I would like to see these kids punished,' she told the press. 'Something has to be done. I don’t know what’s taking them so long.'
A message posted to the Building Hope for Bailey Facebook Page yesterday read:
'I would like to thank everyone who has prayed and supported Bailey and his family!! Bailey has been the strongest toughest boy I know. He has fought this battle long and hard. There just wasn't a way to fix this. I wish I could say he will get better but I can't. Bailey has gone to be with God today.'
The two students who allegedly jumped Bailey were suspended for two days, but police have not yet revealed whether they will be criminally charged.
Bailey’s younger brother was taken out of the school over fears he could also become the victim of bullying.
Investigators have interviewed pupils at the school who witnessed the fight in an attempt to uncover whether the incident was responsible for Bailey's illness and death.
In a statement issued before Bailey's death, school superintendent Stephen Butz said: 'We have requested that the local police assist us in the investigation of this incident and are fully cooperating with their investigation of this incident.'
Here's the Huffington Post Live report on Bailey O'Neill's death:
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