A 13-year-old California boy has died, a week after he was assaulted by two other boys, and the attack — caught on video — raised outrage in the community, KTLA reported.
The video shows the teenager, identified as Diego by family and school officials, talking with another boy, who suddenly punches him in the face. A second boy punches Diego on the side of the head — barely seen on the edge of the cell phone video — and Diego falls to the ground, hitting his head on a concrete pillar. The first boy returns and punches Diego again while he’s on the ground and runs away. The video ends.
KCAL reported that Diego had been bullied by other students in the past, and that his family had reported to the bullying a week before the attack.
Riverside County Sheriff’s deputies responded to the incident at Landmark Middle School in Moreno Valley on September 16. Diego was rushed to the hospital, and the two other boys were arrested and are being held at Riverside County Juvenile Hall, the Press-Enterprise reported.
The sheriff’s department announced Diego’s death in a news release posted by the Moreno Valley Sheriff’s Station on Wednesday. The release said that doctors declared Diego clinically dead Tuesday night and that the boy’s family was making preparations for organ donation.
Hundreds of parents attended a meeting with school officials on September 18, with many saying they were dissatisfied with the school’s response to bullying, KTLA reported.
But according to the Press-Enterprise, the two students accused in the attack were members of an honors program that does not allow participants with any behavior problems — meaning that school officials had seen no signs from the two boys.
The video of the attack was posted to a Facebook page called Keeping Up With the I.E. (Inland Empire).
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[Featured image: Diego, provided by his family]
