Florida girl who was viciously beaten in classroom attack video is STILL being ... trends now
The Florida girl who was beaten in her middle school hallway is still being bullied two months after the vicious attack, a source close to her family has claimed.
The girl, who is not being named to protect her identity, was targeted as she was leaving the lunchroom at Sebastian Middle School in St Augustine on February 12, the insider told DailyMail.com.
She was then dragged to the ground by another student who repeatedly banged her head against the floor as their classmates crowded around cheering, clapping, and barking at the girl while they recorded videos of the incident.
The suspected attacker was disciplined by the school district in accordance to its student code of conduct and issued a Juvenile Civil Citation, the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office previously confirmed.
But the victim's family feels the district has demonstrated a 'sickening' lack of action to protect the girl, the source revealed, adding that it 'feels like the school was trying to slip this under the rug'.
The attack at Sebastian Middle is the latest in a slew of violent incident on school premises to make national headlines. It comes as nearly 50 per cent of schools in America reported an increase in fighting and violence.
A student who was enrolled at an institution in Florida's St. John's County School District attacked a fellow pupil in what appears to be a school hallway on February 12 this year
The student dragged a fellow classmate to the ground and repeatedly banged her head against the floor in the horrific fight as a crowd students stood by, barking and cheering
The girl was left with bruising on her face after the 'traumatic' attack on February 12, the insider told DailyMail.com.
'This wasn't a fight, it was straight up an attack,' the source explained. 'The [victim] 'did not know her attacker's name before that day. The [attacker] waited in the hallway for her to leave the lunchroom and attacked her from behind.'
District officials say the school 'swiftly addressed' the incident and took action against the attacker in accordance to the code of conduct's guidelines for level four offences, which are classified as the 'most serious' infractions.
While the school refused to specify what discipline the student received, the Governor's Office, which addressed the incident after video of the fight went viral online, said the pupil was 'removed from the school'.
However, the victim's family feels the school was 'grossly negligent' in the way it has handled the situation, the source said, citing how the girl is 'continuing to be bullied at school'.
Students have continued barking at the victim, just as they did during the attack, the insider claimed. They also cited other allegations of bullying, including the girl having her lunchbox smashed and her backpack thrown about.
In addition to 'legal justice' for the victim, the family wants to see systemic change within the district.
'They want the school and district to in the future handle incidents like these with plans which remove violent offenders from the school, as their own policy states they will, rather than allow children to have to return to school with fear,' the insider said.
The St. John's County School District told DailyMail.com that the alleged incident involving the lunchbox was addressed and handled by school administration.
A spokesperson, in a statement issued Friday, said: 'All bullying incidents reported to school administration must be reported to the Florida Department of Education and Office of Safe Schools. FLDOE then makes the determination of whether the bullying is substantiated or unsubstantiated.
'If a bullying incident has been reported and submitted by this student or family, it would have been reported to the state.'
District officials say the school 'swiftly addressed' the incident and took action against the attacker in accordance to the code of conduct. The St. Johns County Sheriff's Office also issued the student a Juvenile Civil Citation, which is the state's diversion initiative
Earlier this week, the district declined to discuss the incident in detail, but said in a statement: 'This was an incident that occurred over a month ago, the school swiftly addressed, and consequences were applied in accordance with the St. Johns County School District's Code of Conduct as a level 4 offense.'
The district's code of conduct defines level four acts of misconduct as the 'most serious' and includes a variety of infractions including serious assault and serious battery.
Per the guidance, students who commit these offences will be issued sanctions that 'include suspension and may include placement in an alternative school and/or expulsion'.
Students who commit level four offences
