Dad and mom Element Bullying That Allegedly Led to 10-Yr-Previous Son’s Suicide In Lawsuit In opposition to Faculty

The dad and mom of a 10-year-old Indiana boy who allegedly dedicated suicide after relentless bullying have filed a wrongful demise lawsuit in opposition to his college.

Sam and Nicole Teusch — the dad and mom of Sammy Teusch, who was discovered lifeless by his household on Could 5, 2024 — filed the lawsuit in Hancock County Circuit Court docket on Tuesday in opposition to the Greenfield-Central Group Faculty Company and Greenfield-Central Group Faculty Company Board of Trustees.

Within the swimsuit (by way of WRTV), the boy’s dad and mom allege “callous indifference” by the District and quite a lot of its staff, who they declare have been “repeatedly knowledgeable concerning the bullying of Sammy Teusch (‘Sammy’) by college students beneath the District’s supervision, and but did nothing to deal with it.”

“As a direct and proximate results of the District’s and these people’ gross dereliction of arguably their most essential responsibility, Sammy took his personal life on Could 5, 2024,” they allege within the swimsuit.

Remembering their son as a “sensible, humorous and loving boy, who cherished to fish, play with robots, play soccer, be open air, and lead his household round to collect up trash at any time when they went to the seashore or on a nature hike,” the Teusches declare that after he started college at Weston Elementary in Greenfield, Indiana, he “was subjected to bullying by his classmates.”

Per the swimsuit, Sammy was known as “Dahmer,” in reference to serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. His dad and mom declare that when the boy complained to his instructor concerning the title, “her solely response was that, in her opinion, Sammy did considerably resemble Jeffrey Dahmer.”

The docs declare Sammy would “flip his desk over in an try to attract his instructor’s consideration to the bullying,” however his “cry for assist didn’t work” — alleging the boy would as an alternative be disciplined for “what she perceived to be disruptive conduct.”

After dad and mom additionally allegedly complained to the principal, they are saying she allowed Sammy to have lunch in her workplace — however famous, “It’s unknown whether or not [the principal] took any disciplinary actions in the direction of the bullies, or knowledgeable their dad and mom.”

When Sammy shifted to Greenfield Intermediate Faculty as he entered fourth grade, his dad and mom stated the bullying continued.

“Throughout breakfast interval, Sammy was chased all through the varsity, and would try to cover in a rest room stall, typically refusing to come back out,” reads the swimsuit, earlier than detailing how he was allegedly “bodily assaulted” by one other scholar. The coed is accused of choking and punching the opposite boy within the face, allegedly leading to abrasions and swelling.

One other scholar is accused of hitting Sammy within the head with an iPad, leaving the boy with a black eye and neck and shoulder accidents, per the docs. That scholar was additionally accused of stuffing Sammy right into a rubbish can.

The swimsuit claims the boy’s bullies additionally made enjoyable of his glasses and tooth, calling him “Beaver Tooth.”

In line with the lawsuit, roughly 20 reviews have been made by Sammy’s dad and mom to his lecturers, principal, vice principal and college counselor.

“Regardless of data of the continued bullying and harassment, the District didn’t take applicable corrective motion. This callous disregard for Sammy’s security exasperated him, at one level telling [his father], ‘They do not hearken to me daddy,'” the swimsuit alleges.

The swimsuit additionally claims the varsity participates in “sufferer shaming and sufferer blaming,” alleging administration maintained the bullying was a “Sammy downside,” he was the instigator and he was being bullied “due to his ‘psychological issues.'”

On Could 4, per the docs, one of many alleged bullies known as a mutual good friend who was visiting Sammy’s sister Scarlett — and “threatened Sammy saying, ‘Oh, you wait till Monday. I am getting you. I am getting you.”

“However [the alleged bully] by no means obtained the chance to hold via on his threats. On Could 5, 2024, at roughly 11:30 a.m., Sammy was discovered hanging from his bunk mattress by his 13- year-old brother Xander Teusch,” reads the docs.

“After calling 911, [his father] went to Sammy, grabbed him and stated ‘Oh my God, oh my God, no, no, no, no, no.’ Sam began doing compressions, respiratory into Sammy, and making an attempt to get a heartbeat.”

The kid was pronounced lifeless on the hospital.

In line with the lawsuit, the alleged bully who made the Could 4 cellphone name “acknowledged his accountability for Sammy taking his life.” A Snapchat screenshot was additionally included within the docs, exhibiting somebody say, “It is all my fault for bullying him.” The swimsuit provides, “This admission — from a baby — is in stark distinction to the District’s disregard for and denial of the bullying going down at its faculties.”

The submitting additionally accuses one other alleged bully for taking pictures of Sammy in his open casket at his funeral. The swimsuit claims this scholar “was thereafter seen laughing whereas taking a look at [their] cellphone, in a blood-curdling second paying homage to the film Youngsters of the Corn.” 

This scholar, alleges the docs, “was no odd bully” and was “clearly disturbed, if not inhuman” — earlier than the swimsuit claims the varsity district “did nothing” after being “repeatedly knowledgeable” of the scholar’s alleged conduct.

Along with wrongful demise, Sammy’s dad and mom accuse the plaintiffs of negligent care and supervision, whereas requesting a jury trial.

When reached for remark after the submitting by WRTV, the Greenfield-Central Group Faculty Company reportedly referred the outlet to an earlier assertion.

“The loss of a kid to suicide is deflating to any neighborhood, and Greenfield was clearly in shock for a number of weeks as we closed final college 12 months. Members of the varsity company and the bigger neighborhood grieved with the Teusch household, and we are going to proceed to increase them assist and beauty within the aftermath of the occasion,” they stated beforehand.

“Since that horrible day (Could fifth), we now have reviewed our data with nice scrutiny and interviewed many individuals near the state of affairs. To this present day, we now have discovered nothing to validate the allegation you referenced,” they added. “We consider an goal evaluate of the data would attain the identical conclusion. In Greenfield-Central we do need to be sure that we’re doing all we will do to assist our college students, whatever the wants they’ve once they stroll via our doorways. We’ll at all times preserve that dedication to our college students and households.”

An investigation by Greenfield, Indiana police beforehand confirmed that “there was some bullying going down” in Sammy’s life earlier than the kid’s “traumatic” demise, in accordance with a information launch issued by Police Chief Brian Hartman.

Per the investigation, the Hancock County coroner dominated Sammy died from “asphyxiation by strangulation,” Hartman stated. He additionally famous that “there shall be no legal costs filed with the Hancock County Prosecutor.”