The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department confirms it is investigating a case involving violence against a West Hills High School student.
According to investigators, it happened Friday, Nov. 14 around 3 p.m. along Kaschube Way and Kreiner Way.
NBC 7 spoke exclusively to that student and his mother. She has concerns about how the school is responding to the incident.
“He's been the victim of violence. He's been a victim of a hate crime, and there's been no support for him from the school,” his mother said. She and her son did not want their identities revealed because of concerns about retaliation.
The freshman admitted to playing a role in starting the drama but never thought the consequences would be so severe. He said it started when a female student stole his colorguard saber. He said he hit the back of her head, took back saber and walked away.
He said after school, a group confronted him. He told NBC 7 that group included the girl and about 10 other guys.
“A group of like 10 guys I never met before. They started calling me gay and [expletive] and all that,” he said. “They simultaneously flipped me off and kept calling me gay, and I overheard a few of them saying they were going to jump me.”
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When he went to be with his friends, he said the group showed up again.
“They came up behind me and pantsed me. Underwear and all. It was terrible.”
Things got worse. As he was walking home from school, he said the girl and three boys who were part of the initial group that humiliated him started following him.
“One of the guys punched me in the right temple, and then he pulled me off the wall and was punching and kicking me…They were extremely violent. They were trying to stomp on my head. They were trying to kill me,” he said.
The teen’s mother told NBC 7 she feels the school isn’t doing enough to keep her son safe.
“‘Oh yeah we'll take a quick statement here. Take it home, write it out, bring it back the next day’ was basically their level of response,” she said.
West Hills High School did not respond to NBC 7’s request for comment, but Grossmont Union High School District released the following statement:
We are aware of the situation and took immediate action once the incident was reported. Law enforcement is investigating this matter and corrective action has been taken by the school to protect student safety.
The district was unable to comment further due to privacy concerns.
The Sheriff’s Department said the case is under investigation, and it’s working in conjunction with the school district. A spokesperson said detectives are talking to witnesses and if there are others out there who saw what happened, they would like to hear from them. Possible witnesses can call the Santee Sheriff's Station at 619-956-4000. They can also remain anonymous and call the Crime Stoppers Students Speaking Out Hotline at 888-580-8477.
