What to Know

  • An NJ highschool scholar’s demise by suicide final week has now led to indefinite suspensions of 4 ladies allegedly concerned in a hallway assault caught on video that was posted on social media
  • The sufferer, 14-year-old Adriana Kuch, took her personal life at her Bayville, New Jersey, residence two days later, household and investigators say; they are saying Central Regional Excessive College dealt with the scenario poorly
  • The college district says it adopted coverage in not submitting a police report over the assault, as a substitute taking the woman to the nurse; her father says that is not ok and is demanding justice

Silence from native prosecutors in a single New Jersey county remained deafening for one household, and lots of supporters, Friday, as they awaited information on whether or not felony fees can be filed towards college students in a college bullying case that has drawn nationwide headlines, largely for one overwhelming motive: The 14-year-old woman at its heart is lifeless.

Family and friends of Bayville’s Adriana Kuch, a freshman at Central Regional Excessive College in Berkeley Township, ready to honor her reminiscence later Friday as fallout over video of the horrific assault, and the way the college dealt with each the assault and the existence of the footage, proceed to mount.

Kuch’s father, Michael Kuch, stated this week that Ocean County prosecutors informed him they deliberate to file felony fees towards a minimum of three of the ladies seen on video attacking his daughter final month. Prosecutors beforehand stated that they have been “conscious of the incident” however could not remark additional as a result of the case includes juveniles.

The Ocean County prosecutor launched a press release Friday, saying the workplace has mentioned the matter with the superintendent within the morning and talked about methods to enhance district response to incidents. The workplace additionally advised the district work on programming and providers for the scholars.

All 4 ladies concerned within the assault on Kuch, who took her personal life at her residence 48 hours after video of the bullying surfaced on-line, have been suspended indefinitely pending the result of the authorized course of, the district superintendent confirmed Thursday. Kuch’s members of the family have been those who discovered her lifeless on Feb. 3.

Two days earlier, the hallway assault video was posted to social media. Information 4 has obtained that footage (beneath). WARNING: Be aware that some viewers could discover its contents disturbing.



Information 4 obtained the Central Regional Excessive College battle video. WARNING: Some could discover this disturbing to look at.

The footage itself lasts lower than a minute. It reveals Kuch strolling down the hallway along with her boyfriend as the children recording the second method them getting in the wrong way. Immediately, there is a fast motion from somebody close to the phone-holder and pink liquid sprays out of a cup, throughout Kuch. She is then set upon by a minimum of two individuals, the video reveals, slammed into college lockers and surrounded by what’s now a trio of attackers.

She crumples on the ground. The three classmates, backpacks swinging, fall over themselves a bit close to the lockers, virtually stepping on Kuch as she crawls round on the ground, making an attempt to gather herself. Then they begin shoving her, dragging her virtually alongside the bottom on her knees, raking her towards the crimson college lockers, the white soles of her footwear the one a part of her seen beneath her attackers at numerous factors. Then one woman grabs her by the hair.

The violent assault continues for one more few seconds earlier than two adults run into the video body and pull the attackers off Kuch. She is seen writhing on the bottom, her arms holding both aspect of her head as a person stands over her. He then helps the bruised and bloodied woman up. The footage wraps.

Whereas authorities haven’t publicly linked the assault video submit to Kuch’s demise, her father Michael has. He says he believes bullying drove his daughter to suicide and eviscerated the college for not calling the cops after the assault, regardless of the very fact he says Adriana blacked out. Taking her to the college nurse alone was inadequate, he says.

District Superintendent Triantafillos Parlapanides stated the response at Central Regional was in keeping with coverage, telling NBC New York that it is customary apply for the college to inform the police.

“We have all the time notified the police however we do not all the time press the costs. It is determined by the severity of the costs,” Parlapanides stated.

When requested if the district was presumably rethinking whether or not or not they press fees, or whether or not suspensions have been acceptable, Parlapanides stated “we’re taking a look at that, we’re taking a look at all of that.”

The woman’s father says if the district believes their actions happy coverage, then the coverage is woefully inadequate. He did file a police report.

Michael Kuch unleashed his personal social media messaging, saying he took Adriana Kuch to the cops proper after the incident. Had the college launched an investigation at that time, he says, he believes the movies may have been found and brought down earlier, doubtlessly preserving his daughter the mortification he says price her life.

Now he desires the footage seen — broadly.

“I need all the world to know what these animals did to my daughter,” Michael Kuch stated.

Parlapanides pinned the blame for a lot of the conduct seen on the video on an considerably stunning goal: pandemic education.

“They’ve seen issues at residence, home violence, issues they should not have been aware of, however sadly with COVID, they have been,” Parlapanides stated.

Now, new movies are surfacing of different bullying incidents at the highschool. A video from 2022 reveals a lady, along with her arm in a sling due to a shoulder damage throughout a wrestling match, getting attacked. That scholar’s mom informed NBC New York she needed to ship her daughter to an out-of-district college after her attackers have been suspended for simply 10 days.

In one other assault from the identical 12 months, the sufferer once more needed to be transferred out afterward. Jonathan Ettman, the lawyer for the household suing the college, stated that video of the incident “instantly [went] up on social media to intimidate and harass the sufferer, on this case my shopper.”

Ettman advised a cellphone ban be instituted.

“Maybe the answer is we’ve got to limit these children from having their cellphones whereas at school, whereas they need to be studying,” Ettman informed NBC New York.

The college despatched two letters residence to oldsters about Adriana Kuch’s demise, one on Monday, the primary college day after she took her life, and one other one Wednesday, the identical day lots of of scholars voiced their outrage on the administration over Kuch’s case by strolling out of lecture rooms en masse – from the primary bell to the final bell.

The primary communication on Monday kind of knowledgeable the college group of Kuch’s passing, provided its heartfelt condolences to her household and buddies and suggested individuals of disaster counseling and different assets. The second letter (learn it in full beneath) acknowledged a few of the frustration behind Wednesday’s demonstrations.

“For the reason that tragic passing of our scholar this previous Friday, we totally perceive that college students, employees and the group are hurting for the lack of such a younger girl with a shiny future,” the letter begins.

It goes on to reference a second of silence, and the college’s plan to let the scholars rally in a peaceable, organized method.

“Sadly, nonetheless, the scholar exercise started to intrude with the educational course of because the day continued,” the letter learn. Dismissal was early and a bit chaotic that day, and the district stated it could not allow additional rallies with out prior administrative approval, citing its concern for the “well being, security and well-being for all college students.”

However college students on Friday once more walked out of sophistication, voicing their displeasure with the college’s response to the tragedy.

“They did not ship out a letter till two days after she died, they tried to cover it. They did not need anybody speaking about it,” stated senior Destiney Gilliland.

Kuch appeared to have been a liked scholar and group member. A neighbor shared video from final summer season that reveals her bounce right into a yard pool to save lots of a bit of woman who was seemingly drowning.

“She was like a daughter to me, she was at my home virtually day by day,” that neighbor, Roxanne Gattuso, stated.

Funeral providers for Adriana can be non-public.


Should you or somebody wants assist, please contact the Suicide and Disaster Lifeline by calling 988, name the Nationwide Suicide Prevention hotline at 1-800-273-8255 or attain out to the Disaster Textual content Line by texting ‘Residence’ to 741741 anytime.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *