Two Maryland parents are demanding answers after their 7-year-old son was hospitalized following an alleged incident at C. Paul Barnhart Elementary School in Waldorf, where they say he was "hung" in the school bathroom by a fourth-grade student. The parents, who wish to remain unidentified, described their son's injuries and trauma, stating, "If you look at my son, he has marks under his eyes. He still has bruises on his neck from being choked. He's traumatized. It's going to take time. This is not something he's going to just get over overnight."
Hospital paperwork documented one of the boy's injuries as a neck contusion caused by blunt trauma. While the school system described the situation as "horseplaying" that resulted in a jacket being caught on a stall door hook, the parents remain unconvinced. The school's statement noted that the fourth-grader involved sought help from staff after the incident.
The boy's mother voiced her disbelief, saying, "It doesn't make sense to me. If you're horseplaying, how do you get caught on a hook? We need answers. I want answers, and we won't stop until we get answers." She added that her son recounted a troubling interaction, claiming the older boy said, "I'm going to show you how I did people back in the day," fueling the parents' belief that this was a case of bullying.
The parents are calling for changes, including stricter policies and better supervision. "I want to know why is a fourth grader in the same bathroom as a second grader? Most schools have them divided. I feel this is very unacceptable," the boy's mother said.
Emphasizing the need for safety, the boy's father shared, "These are all our children, and they are the future. So, we just need to protect them. Like, we sending our kids to school every day thinking that they are safe." The family has decided their son will not return to the school and hopes their story prevents similar incidents in the future.
Link: WUSA9