Jennie Runevitch/Eyewitness News
Henry County - A Henry County mother wants criminal charges filed against a student who she says bullied and sexually threatened her son in school.
From cases in Carmel and Fishers to incidents in Greensburg and Delphi, bullying has been put in the spotlight for schools.Now another alleged case has prompted a parent to file a police report after what she says happened to her 13-year-old son at Blue River Valley Junior-Senior High School.
"He was not only physically threatened - the kid laid his hand on him - but he was sexually threatened," the victim's mother said.
The victim's mother, who did not want to be identified, said her son was terrorized by a male classmate over a period of several days in the gym at school. According to the police report, her son was threatened in class and put in a headlock. The report also says that the boy threatened to sexually violate him.
"The thing that bothered me most was the sexual threat," the victim's mother said.
The mother said that not only has bullying incident itself upset her family, but also how the school has handled it.
"I questioned the principal about it and he said, 'Well this other kid needs P.E.' so my son could come sit in the office," she said.
"He told my son, 'you should be OK'. What happens if that kid followed through with that sexual threat? My son would not be OK. He would not be OK the rest of his life."
Although she said that the bully served a suspension, the victim's mother said school leaders did not respond quickly enough, nor did they take the threat seriously enough.
She is now pushing for better policies in order to keep students safe.
"When a bullying case is reported, there needs to be steps that need to be followed immediately," she said. "You know, you hear the Carmel scenario. You hear the boy that committed suicide. No, it's not acceptable."
The victim's mother took her concerns to the school board this week, and she has also transferred her son to another school. Eyewitness News attempted to contact the principal about this case, but he was unable to be reached.
Police are still investigating.
