California mother sues school after alleging bullying incident left son with brain damage

A mother is suing Animo Westside Charter Middle School after she said a bullying incident left her son with severe brain damage and said school officials did nothing to stop it.

In January 2018, surveillance footage showed a boy getting off a bus. He is approached by a larger boy who appears to punch him and put him in a choke-hold in the video. At one point, a school staff member is seen walking by but does not stop, the video shows. The boy allegedly lost consciousness twice, according to the lawsuit.

The boy was helped inside, and staff members brought him to the main office. Video shows them laying him down on the floor while they call his mother. She said that when she arrived, nobody had called 911.

“The school district has seen the video. The fact that they can watch that video and not so much offer an apology is really, really disgusting,” said Ben Meiselas, the attorney representing the mother and son.

The complaint said the boy suffered permanent brain and spine damage as well as “post-traumatic sleep disorder.”

“That child I dropped off at 7:30 that morning, he is not the same anymore,” said the boy’s mother.

Officials with the organization that runs the charter school, Green Dot, wrote in a statement, “We take seriously the safety of all our students and quickly address bullying of any kind on our campuses. We promptly and thoroughly investigate any complaint and take appropriate corrective action.”

The boy’s mother said she wants an apology from the school and cannot believe the bully was not expelled.