Attack on autistic teen posted on YouTube
August 27, 2008 by Kristina Chew, PhD
Filed under Health
This past June, a 16-year-old with autism is punched in the face and bullied by a teenager who attends the same high school—-and the whole attack is videotaped and posted on YouTube. The 16-year-old’s family saw the video and was able to identify the attacked. WSBT (South Bend, Indiana) interviewed Joyce Vermillion and Amber Fairchild, the mother and sister of the boy who was attacked:
“First it was bad enough that they did it. Then they videotaped it. Then they made it into a joke. They did it in slow motion and they replayed it frame by frame,” Fairchild said. “It hurts my feelings so bad, it hurts my heart.”
The family says the boy’s face was swollen after the attack, but since then he has been doing well.
The video helped the family identify his attacker, who attends the same high school.
Mishawaka police said the police report was filed Tuesday and officers are on the case.
The telltale video is no longer on YouTube; Fairchild was able to download it.
And you really have to wonder, what were the teenagers who did the bullying it thinking. Or not.
This is disgusting. Each and every person involved in this – from the fight to the taping to the sick editing process – should be held accountable in some way. Punished and made to receive treatment/evaluations of some sort.
Abusing another human being and posting it on the Internet like some kind of morbid trophy is horrible, but when that human being is autistic or has any kind of mental health condition or physical disability, it feels a million times worse and makes me think the bullies are that much more in need of psychiatric help.
And, sadly, it gives me more reason to be relieved that Charlie gets 1:1 supervision at school and at other times. I feel very watchful when he passes groups of boys these days and they shoot glances in his direction.
Oh man, I live in South Bend and hadn’t heard of this (I guess I don’t watch the news enough.)
This is just horrible. I do wonder what the punishment for the bully will be.
Sickening. But, what do we expect in a society where we have taught our kids (through all sorts of media) to glorify violence and that the only way to succeed (survive?) is by beating your way to the top? Ok, off my soap box now. And, yes, Kristina, a very good reason to be grateful Charlie has 1:1 in school! I think that’s why I am so fearful of trying to put Nik back in school, too.
There’s a special place in hell reserved for said attacker/loser.
This sort of thing terrifies me. Heartbreaking.
Low-lifes looking to become internet celebrities as the icing on the cake of already being immoral bullies committing battery.
The upside is that it made it easier for law enforcement to apprehend and charge them. (And I agree with Alicia. If there were others involved, prosecution should extend to those involved in production of the video.)
@ Regan – That’s one good thing about the Internet in relation to the bullies of this generation: The quick “fame” sites like You Tube bring them (re: this case, that high school girl case, and even a case at one of my area’s high schools) makes it that much easier for parents/law to catch them.
sometimes, there isn’t enough vomit in the world.