The attack took place on the commonly-used trail to Valley View Elementary and Mark Isfeld High School
Comox Valley mother seeks info about vicious attack on girl
UPDATE: RCMP are investigating the incident and have a lead to one possible suspect. According to an RCMP statement, one of the attackers had long blonde hair and wore black and white checkered shoes and black and white pants. Another wore baggy blue jeans with Vans shoes. One of the attackers wore a purple toque. The victim heard both boy and girl voices.
The mother o the girl confirmed for Decafnation that her daughter had been bullied throughout the school year and had received multiple threatening texts, most recently from a number that was unknown at the time, but that RCMP may have now identified. At one point during the year, the texts became so threatening, that the Meszaros changed their daughters cell phone number.
Read a statement by the Comox Valley School board of trustees here
A fifteen-year-old girl was beaten unconscious by a group of four other teenagers, while walking to school Tuesday morning.
Cheryl Meszaros posted a plea for information on her Facebook page. She’s seeking anyone who witnessed something “suspicious in any way or form between 8:30-8:45am on April 23,” on the trail from Valley View Drive through to Valley View Elementary school between the BlackBerry bushes.
The young woman was attacked from behind and did not see her assailants.
Students who go to the elementary school and Mark Isfeld High School use the trail regularly.
Meszaros plea on social media brought an outpouring of support, and several stories of similar incidents at or near Comox Valley schools.
One poster said their granddaughter was “bullied and tortured almost daily” at Highland High School. But complaints to the principal resulted in no action. “The school board and the school won’t (solve) the problem.” the person wrote.
Another poster said “It’s the biggest lie that schools tell all parents : We will NOT tolerate bullying!” They said they had called “countless times” to the school and the school district office, complaining about bullying of their child, but got no help from either source.
Meszaros told Decafnation that anyone with information about this latest attack can message her via Facebook.
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My cousin was constantly bullied and ended up always having to fight to get people to leave him alone back in the 1990’s at school in Courtenay. is 35 now and it really had a negative impact on him…he has been jumped as an adult as well and no one really took that seriously (the police specifically)…
I think there should be a bigger police presence on patrol around the highschools after school, especially now that things have become legal that teens can buy and sell…The Comox Valley has a rough side that is getting harder to ignore these days…
What do you mean by “especially now that things have become legal that teens can buy and sell”? Teens can’t buy pot legally.
If the parents are not able to remedy the situation then the children should be charged as adults
It occurs to me that there used to be paid supervisors on school grounds before the bell, during lunch periods and after school. While I dislike the idea of not fixing the problem as opposed to putting a band aid on it, I do think that we need to take this issue very seriously. Act quickly and decisively to send a message that this kind of violence will not be tolerated. Go to the next school board meeting and demand proper funding for the kind of supervision that unfortunately, it seems we need. Our community is better than this. Unless the public speaks out nothing will change. NB this is not a Teacher’s job
So I checked again it is not the anniversary of Reena’s death. She was murdered in November.
Meanwhile in some other random Face Book post it was noted that Kelly Ellard may have moved to the Comox Valley. Maybe these ‘girls’ want to be elevated to adult court and sent away for the better part of a decade of their life.
Perhaps the perps should have a sit down with Kelly to chat about the repercussions of being a &%$&%.
I think that today is the anniversary of Reena Virk’s murder in a similar situation.
Many years ago, my son was picking up his girlfreind on the last day of school there, the basketball team wanted to fight him. He refused. Then one of them tried to stomp on his dashound dog, which surely would of snapped its back. He retailiated, school did nothing and neither did the cops. I see they havent changed their policy, sweep it inder the matt and it will go away. So eone knows something, to beat someone unconscious, and being gang jumped is unacceptable. Sending prsyers that the teenager is physically okay, emotionally this will scar her for life.
I’ve read the posts on Facebook and it is totally terrible what happened to this girl. I hope they find and punish the ones that did this to her. With that being said, there are only so many teachers, staff, principals, what should we as parents expect from the school system? At what point in time should parents take accountability for their children. I have 3 kids of my own who have been bullied, I have never blamed the school. Kids are going to find a way to bully no matter what rules schools enact. I try to raise my kids to stand up for themselves there friends and those that are unable or can’t stand up for themselves. You can’t control other people. We can’t place blame on those that try to provide a safe environment. We need to start with our own families!
*their
I completely agree with you Michelle. It is up to families to teach their children how to behave in society. As parents, it is our job to have the conversations, to set the rules and dole out the consequences. It is helpful if when our kids are at school that most of these rules and norms are reinforced by teachers and admins because it takes a village.
It is also true that children have a right to be protected from harm and safe on school grounds and within the walls of our public education buildings. The District has a responsibility to ensure our children’s safety is met and sustained. It is absolutely not ok for a child to be cowering in a bathroom because they are scared of another student(s). That falls to the District to establish policies around school safety and it is the admins job to follow procedure. Anything less is negligent.
I don’t think anyone wants to play the blame game, we want solutions that are meaningful, can be followed, and that protect our kids. That is not asking too much because as adults, that is our responsibility. All of us.
How anyone makes space for bullying or accommodates it, it beyond me. We have a zero tolerence policy on ANY sort of bullying/harassment. And we have a straight forward to response to it if/when it happens. Parents and staff need to work together on this and stop operating in silos. Period.