Junior high student facing charges over alleged assault

A Clarendon Junior High student will face charges after being accused of attacking another student in a bathroom at the school last week, leaving the victim with a broken jaw.

Other students are also expected to face charges in connection to the case as officials believe the boy was lured into the bathroom for the purpose of being attacked.

The attack, which was videoed and subsequently shared on social media Friday, sparked outrage from the community. The video shows the victim, confirmed by officials to be 13 years old, apparently unexpectedly assaulted in the junior high boys’ restroom by being struck in the face and knocked to the ground.

County Attorney Landon Lambert said his office learned about the incident Friday afternoon and said the Donley County Sheriff’s Office did a great job securing witness statements and preparing the report, and the youth appeared before County Judge John Howard Monday for a hearing.

Lambert said his office was seeking juvenile detention for the 14-year-old suspect for a period of ten-business days during which time authorities could better evaluate the case. The judge did not grant the county attorney’s request and instead released the youth into the care of his mother with a requirement that he have 24-hour supervision, Lambert said.

The court action led to more anger on social media as some felt the youth was not being punished, but Lambert says that is not the case.

“This is just the beginning,” Lambert said. “It is absolutely not the end; this was just the first step. If he does anything else we can detain him. He should not be in public without his parent.”

Lambert said it’s important for people to understand that the juvenile justice system is set up to be rehabilitative more than punitive, but he said the young man “is absolutely facing charges.”

The county attorney also said three to five other youth are believed to have been involved with the attack.

“It was a complete setup,” Lambert said, noting that parents and the public need to be aware of “the law of parties” in Texas.

“Any person who helps set up a victim is just as culpable as the person who attacks the person,” Lambert said. “Every kid that had any part of this will feel something from the county attorney’s office. I promise that’s coming.”

Sheriff Butch Blackburn said the juvenile probation department and the county attorney’s office took quick action when his office turned the case over to them.

“Landon did excellent work,” Blackburn said. “It’s no little feat getting all that in order, and he had done by noon Monday. I have no doubt that the court will adjudicate that boy.”

Blackburn also said that the kids involved in the case, including the alleged attacker, have been very forthcoming about what happened and said school officials have also been very cooperative. He is frustrated by social media, however, and he would like the public to give officials a rest from what they read online.

“What you read on Facebook is probably not 100 percent of the story,” Blackburn said. “Facebook is not where you need to get your information.”

Clarendon School Superintendent Jarod Bellar could not comment on the case specifically, but he echoed Blackburn’s comments, saying he would like the public to understand there is a process that has to be followed.

“There’s due process whether people like it or not,” Bellar said. “We’re in a world of instant gratification, but that’s not how things work.”

Bellar said the school has a responsibility to look after the best interests of everyone involved and of all students.

“I wish people would just give us some time to do a complete investigation,” Bellar said. “They need to allow Mrs. Pigg (the junior high principal) to go through the process.”