A Virginia mom is furious after her son was allegedly attacked during a horrifying incident in his middle school classroom. According to multiple local news outlets, the 13-year-old's mother, who did not wish to be named, said her son suffered from second- and third-degree burns after a classmate intentionally lit his hair on fire last week. Now, she's speaking out to anyone who will listen, and is demanding justice for what her son has been through.
It happened on January 12 at John Rolfe Middle School in Richmond, Virginia.
According to the teen's mother, the school was on lockdown due to COVID-19 contact tracing, which meant her son was sitting in his math class to have lunch instead of going to the cafeteria.
But when he stood up to throw away his food tray, the unthinkable happened.
A female student is believed to have walked up behind the boy with a lighter in one hand.
Moments later, she "flicked the lighter and lit his hair on fire," the mother shared.
Before he knew it, her son's hair was fully on fire — and his classmates were reportedly looking on in shock.
Luckily, a school resource officer was nearby when it happened.
The officer sprang into action and helped snuff out the flames spreading across the boy's head.
After the school called 911, firefighters and paramedics swooped in to administer first aid and transport the boy to the hospital. But by then, he was already badly injured — not to mention shaken up.
"He had long, curly, just a nice head of hair," his mom told the outlet of his shoulder-length hair. "It was beautiful."
Now, she says the boy's hair is singed in several places.
There are also bald spots where he once had thick, full locks, and both second- and third-degree burns along the side of his scalp, head, ear, and parts of his neck. A few of them are badly blistered.
The mother says she learned about the incident shortly after it happened when a school administrator called her at home. But during the call, she was frozen in shock.
"All I could hear the teacher say over the phone was something is happening with my son," the mother shared.
The mother told Fox 13 that the entire ordeal has been traumatizing.
In fact, it was particularly heartbreaking the moment she first saw her son at the hospital.
"He was hysterical; he looked scared,” she told the outlet. “His pride emotionally and mentally is broken."
In the meantime, school administrators have reached out to the boy's mother and issued a statement to the whole student body. But even so, the mother feels as though it's all been downplayed. She also doesn't understand why the school was hesitant to press charges against the student with the lighter, whom she believes committed a crime.
According to WWBT, the school's statement read:
“This is Ms. George, principal of John Rolfe Middle School. I’m calling to let you know about an incident that took place in your child’s science class today. A student was burned by a classmate who was playing with a lighter. The injured student was taken to the hospital and is receiving treatment. Here at school, we are reviewing the incident to ensure something like this does not happen again and taking appropriate disciplinary action as necessary. Thank you.”
That response has not been sitting well with the teen's mom.
"What if this was your child, what would you be? Would you be livid would you be devastated how would you feel?” the mother asked. "Would you feel supported by Henrico County Schools?"
“You can’t just brush this under the rug and think that it’s going to just go away," she continued. "It’s not."
"My son is severely hurt, he’s suffering, and it’s not fair to me," she continued. "It’s not fair to him, so y’all just need to be held accountable."
For now, the boy is at VCU Medical Center, where he's recovering from his burns. It's unclear how long he'll have to stay in the hopsital.
The girl who allegedly set his hair on fire has been charged with unlawful wounding and the case will be heard in the Juvenile and Domestic Court, reported WWBT.
Source: cafemom.com
