South Carolina bullies who pushed a 12-year-old girl to attempt suicide later visited her in the ICU to take photos they then circulated on social media, a newly-filed lawsuit claims.
Kelaia Turner was allegedly physically and verbally assaulted by peers who branded her ‘roach’ and ‘moustache face’ at the Dr. Phinnize J Fisher Middle School in Greenville County, her parents claim in a 24-page federal lawsuit against school district officials for ignorance.
Her mother, Ty Turner, has said she believes the bullying began when Kelaia started wearing her natural hair to school and escalated over the years.
She claimed that instead of providing support and helping reduce incidents, teachers joined in on the torture.
The bullying eventually became so bad that Kelaia was found hanging from a belt in her bedroom at home, and was dead for a complete eight minutes before paramedics could revive her.
She was in a coma for weeks, and wound up staying in the hospital for 101 days. It was during this period when the alleged bullies snuck in and took photos of her.
Kelaia then suffered severe brain damage, and has been left with no control over her body – instead relying on a tracheostomy tube to breathe and a feeding tube.
The federal lawsuit claims Kelaia started experiencing bullying in August 2021 when her classmates started calling her names and saying she looked ‘like a man.’
At one point, even her teacher, Olivia Bennett, allegedly got in on the act.
‘Ms. Bennett was complicit in the bullying and said nothing to the other students to stop it,’ the suit says.
‘One student asked, “Where’s the roach?” and Ms. Bennett pointed to [Kelaia].’
Turner then emailed the teacher, as well as the principal of the middle school, to complain about Bennett’s actions, noting that ‘children committed suicide from this behavior in the past,’ according to the lawsuit.
The next day, it said, the principal acknowledged her complaint and said they were ‘working tirelessly to repair whatever is damaged.’
In the aftermath, both Turner and Kelaia’s father met with the teacher to address the incident and discussed the need for the student leading the bullying to be separated from their daughter.
But when the student found out that Kelaia told her parents, he allegedly ‘cussed out’ the preteen girl on January 26, 2022.
He was never disciplined for the spat, the lawsuit said.
It goes on to say that the bullying continued through 2022 ‘with no actions taken by the defendants,’ listing other incidents and reports to school officials Turner made – including a fight between her daughter and another student in March.
She claimed Kelaia was suspended in the aftermath and ‘the student who caused the fight was not.’
Then, on May 23, 2022, one of Kelaia’s classmates played a song on YouTube called The Black People Song, which teacher John Teer allegedly allowed to be played without any comments about its offensiveness or any reprimands to or discussions with the student who played it, according to the suit.
Turner then complained to the principal and Metris Cain, another teacher, to complain about the incident – and were once again told that an investigation would be conducted.
But in October, Turner said another student ‘had been pushing [Kelaia] several times over the past month’.
She claimed that the offending student was never punished, and the only reaction school officials was to tell Kelaia if it happened again.
Still, the bullying continued, and at one point Kelaia’s clothes ‘had water poured on them and were then thrown into the trash’.
By March 11, 2023, Kelaia confided in a friend about her thoughts of committing suicide – and five days later, she was found hanging from a belt in her bedroom at home.
According to Ty, the 12-year-old was dead for a complete eight minutes before paramedics could revive her.
‘She was cool to the touch, blood was coming out of her nose, and she had already urinated on herself. She had fully committed to what it was that she was attempting to do, and she was gone for eight whole minutes.
‘Paramedics couldn’t find a pulse, and they couldn’t find her heartbeat. There were grown men in the room crying,’ Ty recalled.
But the earnestly religious mother kept praying and after a few minutes, a paramedic found a faint pulse.
‘He said, “I found a pulse. It’s very, very faint, but I found one. I don’t know what you’re out here doing but I would say he should keep doing it”. Kelaia is a miracle.’
Once brought back to life, Kelaia was in a coma for weeks, ultimately staying in the hospital for 101 days and suffered severe brain damage.
The family now says nine individual teachers and faculty members failed in their duties to ‘provide a culture of safety and an environment free from assault.’
The suit also cites violations of both the Equal Protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and Title IX protections against gender discrimination.
The family is now seeking actual and punitive damages to cover medical bills, psychiatric expenses, special education, lost wages, life care expenses, disability care, injure to her psyche and emotional state and loss of enjoyment of life.
An online fundraiser also notes that the family has been struggling with limited mobility, no wheelchair van and mounting financial stress.
‘We are fighting for Kelaia’s healing and well-being everyday, believing that she has a purpose and that her story can inspire others,’ the GoFundMe says.
‘We are asking for your support to help her not only survive but thrive – through donations for a wheelchair-accessible van, medical needs and home care.’
As of Monday evening, it had raised over $10,400 for the family.
But school district officials have vehemently denied all allegations of ignorance and negligence.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Greenville County Schools said: ‘The District is aware of the allegations made by this parent and has addressed them directly with the parent.
‘We disagree with these allegations and have conducted a thorough investigation and review of each allegation at the time they were made. While we do not agree with the allegations, our hearts go out to Kelaia Tecora Turner, her mother, and their family.
‘Every school implements anti-bullying strategies and programs for students, including how to recognize bullying and how to report it.
‘When a school is aware of possible bullying, those concerns are investigated promptly, thoroughly, and confidentially.
‘Steps are taken to determine what occurred, and if any inappropriate conduct occurred, then disciplinary measures are provided to the offending student and strategies designed to prevent any similar conduct are implemented as well. If the alleged conduct is possibly criminal in nature, law enforcement is notified.’