It looks like things turned up a notch in the viral incident of a white high schooler punching a Black girl in an alleged racist attack. The white student in question has been slammed with a felony charge in connection to the incident.
Shawnee Mission East High School sophomore Brey’anna Brown was seen in a video published by the Kansas City Defender confronting two white girls about using racial slurs. After they walked away, a 15-year-old white boy told Brown to “shut the fuck up” and started calling her the n-word. In the video, the boy pushed her and the two got into a scuffle that resulted in Brown’s nose being broken nose before a teacher finally broke them up.
Brown told KSHB she didn’t expect to get into a physical fight but she was making split-second decisions in the moment.
“The thought in my head was either, I protect myself, or I run away from it or I get beat up, and I don’t know what else to do, so I chose to stand up for myself,” said Brown.
Brown confirmed she was suspended following the incident. However, the report says she’s not the only one who received a punishment.
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On Wednesday, the white male student was charged with felony aggravated battery with great bodily harm, according to court records. He is scheduled to appear in court on December 6. A criminal complaint alleges he “unlawfully, feloniously and knowingly cause great bodily harm … or disfigurement” to the female student.
Records show the 15-year-old — whom KCUR is not naming because he is a minor — was also charged with aggravated assault and battery in June. Court documents show an emergency review hearing for that case was held Wednesday, and the teen was remanded into custody.
In Missouri, aggravated battery is considered a form of assault which can range anywhere from a Class A misdemeanor to a Class E felony. There’s been no talk of whether the boy’s use of racial slurs have been considered in his charge. It’s also unclear at the moment whether the boy is going to prosecuted as an adult or a minor.
The students at Shawnee Mission East may consider this a victory following their protest earlier this week, criticizing the school for not giving a proper response regarding the incident. However, the fight isn’t over.
The report says a country-wide protest has been organized for Thursday evening by the Black Student Solidarity Network echoing the demands of the students: an apology to Brown from the school for suspending her and giving the boot to the student accused of attacking her.