The family of a teen accused of a brutal attack that left 16-year-old Kaylee Gain with brain damage has claimed that she's the "real victim".
They are now trying to raise £113,000 ($150,000) for the girl's legal defence, saying she was "harassed and bullied" before the violence occurred. Kaylee from St Louis, Missouri got a broken skull and brain damage after the spat on March 8 near her school.
The video of the incident that showed Kaylee's head being harshly smacked into concrete went viral. A 15-year-old girl, who hasn't been named, was arrested and stands accused of assault in the case. However, the family of the girl believed to have attacked Kaylee says she's the actual victim and they're dismissing calls for her to be prosecuted as an adult. They claim she wasn't bullying Kaylee and are gathering money for her legal protection.
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Kaylee Gain has yet to re-gain consciousness after the incident (Facebook)Her auntie spoke to the Daily Mail saying that the teenager was only "defending herself" when she had the fight with Kaylee. They're claiming the situation is not what it seems and have asked for financial support.
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The girl stands accused of serious assault and is held by St Louis Family Court. A hearing is due in early April. Her folks say she's an honour roll student who was "harassed and bullied" before the brawl happened.
They say their initial fundraising page was taken down and they have now created a Change.org petition, calling on the St Louis Juvenile Court to show "compassion" to the schoolgirl, who they claim was "unfairly" painted as a bully in what is a "complicated situation."
Their GoFundMe page was taken down with the platform saying the site prohibits fundraising for the legal defense of an alleged violent crime. A statement on the petition reads: "Prior to an incident on March 8th where she was seen defending herself from harassment and bullying, she had never been in trouble.
Kaylee Gain's GoFundMe has reached over $300k (GoFundMe)For all the latest news, politics, sports, and showbiz from the USA, go to The Mirror US
"Her work as a scholar was tainted by the bullying she had to endure at school. It is unjust that such an accomplished young woman should be charged as an adult for assault without considering all the facts of the case that led to the incident where harm occurred.
It continues: "We request that all aspects of her life be considered during indictment and sentencing her academic achievements, extracurricular involvement, linguistic skills and most importantly her victimhood as a bullied student who was merely defending herself under intense and flight vs fight circumstances.
"But because politicians are inserting themselves in a juvenile matter it has completely swayed public opinion and has incited more divisiveness not only in the local community but nationally."
The petition also says the family has been the subject of racial abuse since the incident. The petition is addressed to Chief Juvenile Officer Rick Gaines and needs 500 signatures to escalate the issue to his office. By Thursday morning it had 502 signatures.
A video of the incident that has been shared on social media appears to show the girl hitting Kaylee's head into the concrete after throwing multiple punches and causing her to fall to the ground. Kaylee seemed to start having a seizure as groups of other teens fought just a few feet away.
Police later found the girl suffering from a serious head injury near the intersection of Norgate Drive and Claudine Drive, roughly a five-minute walk from the high school campus. She was taken to the hospital and remains in critical condition.
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The brawl happened on March 8 near Kaylee's high school (Facebook)After news of the fight broke, the Hazelwood School District released a statement condemning violence within the community. "It is a tragedy anytime children are hurt," the statement read. "Bullying and fighting in the community is an issue for which we all need to take ownership and work towards a resolution for the sake of our children."
"The Hazelwood School District offers our sincerest condolences to everyone involved and will offer additional emotional support from our support and crisis team to those in need."
Kaylee's family have said they are looking for justice but have asked people not to retaliate against the other teenager. They say they don't currently know the extent of Kaylee's injuries. Kaylee's family shared through their lawyer that she has "a fractured skull that resulted in brain bleeding and swelling" and is still unconscious.
Kaylee suffered a broken skull and frontal lobe damage after the incident (Facebook)
Kaylee Gain's family says they won't know how bad injuries are until she wakes up (@christineT12751/X)They said, "Although the family would like justice to eventually be served through the legal system, their focus at this time is dedicated exclusively to Kaylee's recovery". They also called on everyone to stand against teen violence and bullying, as there have been too many serious injuries and even deaths from it recently.
"Kaylee's parents want to make a special request to their fellow parents in the community to ask them to reinforce to their children that physical violence and bullying are never appropriate, and to emphasize to their children that lives of both the perpetrators of teen violence and the victims of violence can be permanently and forever changed as a result of violent incidents that last only a few minutes. Finally, they stressed that they do not want any revenge against anyone involved in what happened to Kaylee."
The statement finishes by asking everyone to pray for Kaylee to get all better and hopes that "teenagers realize that momentary violent actions can have life-altering consequences".
Footage of the attack was widely circulated online (X)Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has said that if Kaylee doesn't make it, the teenager who hurt her should be treated like an adult in court.
Gregory Smith, who is the lawyer for the young person who is accused, said his client goes to Hazelwood East School District, gets really good grades, plays music in the orchestra, and is on the volleyball team. "I believe all of the facts and circumstances of this incident are not appropriate to discuss at this time when another child is in such a critical condition," he mentioned.
He also said: "Those facts and circumstances will have their day in court. I join the call to denounce teen violence and bullying. And most importantly, I join my client and her family in extending our prayers for this family and their child."
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