A South Carolina 14-year-old girl named Kelaia Turner allegedly hanged herself after suffering constant bullying from other middle school students. According to a lawsuit, the same bullies paid Turner a visit in the intensive care unit and took insulting photos of her. While her suicide attempt did not kill her, it did result in significant brain damage.
Kelaia Turner previously attended Dr. Phinnize J. Fisher Middle School, where she was subjected to numerous gruelling bouts of bullying. Turner was constantly mocked by other pupils, who referred to her as “roach” or “moustache face”. Teachers also joined the taunting, exacerbating Turner’s shame.
Kelaia’s mother, Ty Turner, spoke with WYFF4, telling them that the school did nothing to halt the bullying. “There was no less than seven to nine times that I, myself personally, reached out to the school, and I had the emails,” Ty told the news agency. “Half the time they didn’t respond back, and if they did, it wasn’t with anything of any sustenance, there was never any resolution.”
The tormenting continued, finally leading Kelaia to hang herself in her bedroom on March 17, 2023. Ty was horrified to discover the awful scenario as she opened the door. “She was cool to the touch, blood was coming out of her nose, and she had already urinated on herself,” Ty told me. “She was completely committed to what she was striving to accomplish, and she was gone for eight minutes. “Paramedics couldn’t find her pulse or heartbeat.”
Kelaia died after around 8 minutes, sustained significant brain damage, and remained in a coma for weeks. During this time, Kelaia’s bullies paid her a visit in the ICU. They captured and later uploaded photos of Turnery unconscious as an absurd joke.
Mocking a now-14-year-old girl who tried suicide is beyond even the most disturbed and disgusting imagination. “Unfortunately, words may hurt. “They used to tell us, ‘Sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will never harm me.’ Words are the only thing we will carry,” Ty Turner said.
Ty is now seeking justice for her daughter by suing the district for Kelaia’s expenditures. These include medical expenditures and special education, among other things. Schine’t Turner launched a GoFundMe campaign to support Kelaia Turner and her family.
The school system has already issued a statement rejecting the charges made by the Turney family. “The District is aware of the allegations made by this parent and has addressed them directly with the parent,” according to the press release. They indicated that they investigated the complaints at the time. “While we do not agree with the allegations, our hearts go out to Kelaia Tecora Turner, her mother, and their family.”