Texas Elementary Students Who Beat 8-Year-Old Unconscious Won’t Face Criminal Charges: Report

Texas Elementary Students Who Beat 8-Year-Old Unconscious Won’t Face Criminal Charges: Report
Stock photo of a classroom. (Feliphe Schiarolli/Unsplash)
Simon Veazey
9/27/2019
Updated:
9/27/2019

The elementary students accused of beating an 8-year-old boy unconscious in a school bathroom will not face criminal charges because they are too young.

Third-grader Christian Boynton was hospitalized with a bleed to the brain, according to his family, after being ambushed by three other students when he arrived on Sept. 24 at Lakewood Elementary School, Tomball Texas.
According to KHOU, Tomball Police say they assisted with an investigation into the accusations, but that the students are too young to be criminally culpable.

Children under 10 cannot be prosecuted for committing crimes under Texas law.

Their victim was out of the hospital by the end of the day, where he was diagnosed with a subdural hematoma after neurologists gave him the all-clear.

His sister, Kailee Boynton, told KHOU three other students cornered him in the bathroom in an provoked attack.

“They pinned my brother down. They were beating him,” she told KHOU. “They beat him to the point of unconsciousness, where they continued to beat him … They went through his backpack.”

Her brother could not find fault with his attackers.

“He told me ’maybe they’re just having a rough day,'” Kailee said. “He is so nice and kind that he can’t even fathom the fact that someone would want to hurt him or be cruel to him.”

Kailee posted two photos to Facebook of her little brother lying on a hospital bed on Sept. 25.

Protective services, which is assisting in the investigation intervene with children as young as 7 at risk of getting into trouble. They can also work with the family of the children involved.

Lakewood Elementary School released a statement two days after the attack, by which time that story was featured in media reports and had stirred up discussions on social media.

“We first want to apologize for the delay in communicating with you regarding this isolated incident,” the statement read.

“While we are equally saddened and disheartened by the actions of our students, our investigation shows that contrary to media reports, at no time was a student left alone unconscious in the restroom. He was evaluated by the nurse immediately.”

The statement did not explain how the staff found out that Christian had been attacked in the restroom and also said they had a “limited ability” to share their investigation details.

His sister said that she was “deeply saddened” by the statement. Writing on Facebook, she said, “To have this ”isolated incident” be taken so lightly and then to have it be downplayed as if it wasn’t something incredibly serious is infuriating.”
The day after the attack, his father wrote,Christian is out of the hospital and doing fine. The neurologists at Texas Children’s have deemed his subdural hematoma as being safe after being monitored. He still has a big bonk on his head and many bruises. We are at home and resting after a long day and night. Thanks to everyone for their prayers”

Responding to a later discussion about the school’s response, he explained that his son had been taken to a regional hospital where he was given an MRI and chest X-ray. “It was there he was diagnosed with a subdural hematoma–he was bleeding from his brain. He was transferred to Texas Children’s Hospital via ambulance and treated there. After several hours of observation he was allowed to come home.”

Simon Veazey is a UK-based journalist who has reported for The Epoch Times since 2006 on various beats, from in-depth coverage of British and European politics to web-based writing on breaking news.
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