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- "He was kicked and dropped": how bullying at school in the Urals turned into a criminal case
"He was kicked and dropped": how bullying at school in the Urals turned into a criminal case
In the Sverdlovsk region, a criminal case was opened on negligence due to harassment of a third-grader at school. According to the mother, the children kicked the boy, spat at him and knocked him down, but the teachers did not react in any way. The Investigative Committee of Russia (TFR) and the prosecutor's office are currently checking the school. Izvestia found out the details of the incident and the rules of conduct in such cases — how to help the child and bring the offender to justice.
Negligence case
In the city of Nevyansk, Sverdlovsk region, a criminal case was opened on negligence due to school bullying of a child with special needs. About this reportedin the department of the Investigative Committee.
"According to the investigation, behavior that caused psychological distress to the child was allowed in relation to one of the young students. At the same time, the school's management was aware of the situation, but did not take measures to resolve it," the TFR noted.
The child's mother is Polina told reporters that her son has been bullied for several years both at school and outside it. The boy was born with hypoxia due to birth trauma, and now he has mental retardation, mental retardation, and dysarthria (impaired pronunciation). Because of this, he stayed in the second year of the second grade - and his new classmates began to offend him.
— Dima was kicked in his backpack, dropped in the snow, insulted, and could spit at him. They took off his hat, shoes, and backpack and threw him over the fence of a private house. The child was taken away in hysterics," the woman complained.
Polina added that she had contacted the homeroom teacher, but he did not understand the situation. The child's abuse continued even in front of her eyes — when the mother came to pick up her son, she saw the boy being knocked down by other guys. After the incident, the police gave the school an idea about eliminating the causes and conditions that contribute to offenses.
Izvestia sent a request to the school where the child is studying. Evgeny Zhabreev, President of the Ural Parent Committee Foundation, said that the situation is under the control of the Office of the Commissioner for Children's Rights of the region. The school is being checked by the prosecutor's office.
"They threw their son on the floor"
Almost simultaneously, a similar story occurred in another city in the Sverdlovsk region, Degtyarsk. The students bullied a classmate and broke his arm in two places, the boy's mother, Elena K., told Izvestia.
According to Elena, Artyom was bullied and bullied from the first grade. All this time, the mother tried to intercede for the child, appealed to the class teacher, the head teacher and the principal, but they did not take action. On February 17, the woman received a call from the school and reported that her child "broke his arm during a game."
— I ran to school, I see my son sitting in the head teacher's office, his arm hanging, a huge horn on his head, because he fell on his head. I asked if an ambulance had been called, and they told me no — "you need to, you call," says Elena.
After that, the woman called the boy's father and took her son to the hospital with him. Artyom was diagnosed with a concussion and fractures of his arm, put in a cast and sent home to be treated. According to Elena, the boy still feels unwell and hardly gets up. His arm hurts, he feels dizzy, and he feels sick after eating — but most of all, the mother is worried about her son's psychological state.
— He told me that he was just standing in the hallway, classmates ran up to him, began dragging him by his arms and legs, and then threw him on the floor. Artyom fell face down, hit his head hard, and his front teeth crumbled. Now the son is very scared, he even falls asleep with the light on. He's afraid to go back to school," says the Izvestia interviewee.
According to Elena, neither the school administration nor the children's parents apologized to her or offered help. After the incident, the woman herself filed a police report: she wants to ensure that the abusers are punished (they continue to attend classes calmly), and safe learning conditions are created at school.
Both the prosecutor's Office and the Investigative Committee are currently investigating the incident. As told to Izvestia in the office of the Investigative Committee, the check is being conducted for signs of a crime under Article 112 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (intentional infliction of moderate harm to health).
— During the supervision measures, eyewitnesses will be interviewed and documents from the hospital will be requested. In accordance with the provisions of the legislation, an educational organization is responsible for the life and health of children during their stay in the institution. According to the results of the inspection, response measures will be taken," the prosecutor's office stressed.
Two months ago, in December 2024, in the same city committed suicide 16-year-old a teenager. According to media reports, the boy could also be bullied and bullied by classmates. The Investigative Committee did not comment on the incident, as well as the course of its investigation.
Izvestia sent inquiries to the Ministry of Education and Youth Policy of the Sverdlovsk Region and to Igor Morokov, the Commissioner for Children's Rights in the Sverdlovsk Region.
The situation in Russia
The problem of school bullying in Russia today is acute. According to the All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion (VTsIOM), bullying every fourth child (25%) has encountered . At the same time, every fifth respondent (20%) said that his children or grandchildren suffered from bullying.
According to the results of the study, the situation with bullying has begun to worsen in recent decades. The survey participants aged 18 to 24 (53%) suffered the most from bullying at school, while representatives of the older generation were almost not bullied (only 8%). At the same time, the majority spoke about bullying by other students (98%), four out of ten — by teachers (41%).
The Bullying project, aimed at combating bullying, provides other data. According to them, school bullying 55% of schoolchildren had a problem, while a third of them were afraid to tell their parents and teachers about it. In 92%, it was about situations with moral humiliation, and in 8% — with physical humiliation. Most often, according to experts, measures are taken in the second case. But in the first case, the children suffer no less — and not only the victims, but also the eyewitnesses, who can also suffer mental trauma.
How to understand that a child is being "bullied"
As Svetlana Yashchenko, a child psychologist and founder of the Svet Mayaka psychological center, explains to Izvestia, children really don't always tell adults about their problems — they are shy, afraid, and ashamed. Bullying can be recognized if you closely monitor changes in a child's behavior, mood, and well-being. A child can be in trouble if he has changed.
Emotional signs:
- The child became withdrawn, anxious, apathetic, depressed, or, conversely, irritable, hysterical, angry.
- The mood changes dramatically, from apathy to sudden aggression or hysteria.
Physical signs:
- Loss of appetite or sleep problems, nightmares.
- Respiratory diseases have become more frequent. Complaints of feeling unwell (headaches, abdominal pain), under this pretext, the child leaves school.
- The child has bruises, abrasions, scratches, damaged items, the origin of which he refuses to explain.
Behavior change:
- He is afraid to go to school, invents reasons to stay at home, which reflects his inner protest against the traumatic situation.
He loses interest in what he used to love:
- An unexpected rapid deterioration in academic performance, there is no moral strength to study.
- Loss of interest in your favorite activities.
- Rapid decline in academic performance.
- Escape to the virtual world (books, videos, computer games).
- The live communication with friends has disappeared, the child does not even talk about them.
— These signals are a cry for help, even if it sounds quiet. You should not rush to blame a child without thinking that he is lazy or lying, or that he is stubborn. Because your pressure here can be the last straw for the child's psyche," says Svetlana Yashchenko.
In this case, the psychologist advises to talk confidentially with the child or to communicate with teachers, to observe the relationship with classmates from the outside. It happens that children are embarrassed to talk about their shame, they are afraid of the reaction of adults. Or they just don't believe that they will help him. Or they are even afraid that careless intervention will exacerbate the situation.
— If the situation remains uncertain, it is important to consult a psychologist, because the child may be afraid to tell everything, even to you. A good psychologist will help him get out of this situation without any mental damage. Children may be afraid or ashamed to tell their parents about humiliating episodes, and a professional is able to carefully open and work through these injuries," the Izvestia interlocutor recommends.
The punishment for harassment
Russian legislation does not contain a separate concept of "bullying", but this does not mean that aggressors go unpunished, explains lawyer Sean Betrozov to Izvestia.Depending on the form and severity of the harassment, the actions of the offenders can be classified under several articles of the Criminal Code (CC RF) and the Code of Administrative Offenses (CAO RF).
If we are talking about beatings, threats or extortion, these are no longer just school disputes, but criminal offenses. Article 116 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Beatings") provides for punishment for causing bodily harm. Article 163 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Extortion") It can be used if a child is forced to transfer money or valuables under threats. Articles 128.1 ("Slander") and 5.61 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation ("Insult") are provided for the dissemination of false information and public insults. And if bullying is systematic and leads to tragic consequences, it is possible to be involved under Article 110 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Driving to suicide"), which entails serious penalties, up to imprisonment.
At the same time, the lawyer notes, the issue of responsibility in such cases is always difficult. An adult violator is fully accountable to the law, but what if the aggressor is a schoolboy?
— From the age of 16, a teenager can be brought to administrative responsibility for insults (Article 5.61 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation) and minor hooliganism (Article 20.1 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation). From the age of 14, he was criminalized for beatings, extortion, hooliganism (Article 213 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) and even for driving to suicide," says Sean Betrozov.
If the offender is under the age of 14, all responsibility falls on the shoulders of his parents. They are responsible for educating their child, instilling in him the norms of morality and respect for others. In case of serious violations, they can be prosecuted under Article 5.35 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation for improper performance of parental duties. Parents are also financially responsible for the actions of their children: if a child has harmed another, his family is obliged to compensate for moral and material damage (Articles 151 and 152 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).
— If the aggressor is too young for criminal responsibility, this does not mean that he can abuse his peers with impunity. In such cases, the mechanisms of the Commissions for Juvenile Affairs (CDN) work. These authorities can register a child, oblige him to attend preventive interviews, and bring parents to administrative responsibility," the lawyer notes.
The school, according to him, can't just stand by either. The management of the educational institution is obliged to respond to complaints from parents, and if the situation gets out of control, involve the police and the juvenile Affairs commission. If the school ignores the problem, then you can contact the prosecutor's office or the Department of Education.
Victim actions
If a child is bullied, parents can file a civil claim for compensation for moral damage, says lawyer Sean Betrozov. The court may order the aggressor's parents to pay a sum of money, which will be a strong signal for them to think about raising their child.
— It is also important to involve social services in the situation. If a child systematically demonstrates aggressive behavior, this may be a signal of problems in the family. The guardianship authorities can check the conditions in which the aggressor is brought up," Betrozov notes.
According to him, if a child tells about bullying or beatings, first of all it is necessary to record all the evidence. Take screenshots of conversations, record conversations between children, take pictures of damaged items, and record injuries in the emergency room.
— Be sure to contact the school administration. Submit an official application in writing. The school is obliged to conduct a trial, summon the aggressor's parents, and propose measures to resolve the conflict," the lawyer adds.
If there is no reaction from the school, the aggressor child's parents, or if there are serious threats to the child's life or health, you should immediately write a police statement and attach all the evidence. If the school administration is inactive and the police are not taking any action, you need to contact the prosecutor's office. And if a child is threatened on the Internet, contact Roskomnadzor.
At the same time, psychologist Svetlana Yashchenko adds, it is very important to help the victim. Create a safe space at home where he can share problems, receive support and find solutions together. Consult a specialist to work on self-esteem, which suffers greatly due to bullying. And finally, if the problem persists, transfer the child to another school.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
