West Virginia: Parents Say Horse Killed By Bullies

They say students threatened to kill the Blackville teens' pets.Story by Macall Allen BLACKSVILLE -- Bullying has recently made national headlines after a 15-year-old Massachusetts teen hung herself after being bullied for several months.Six students have been charged in connection with her death. And parents say the same type of name calling and mistreatment is happening here in Monongalia County and they believe a family horse is dead because of it. Beth Hartley and Allen Hixenbaugh say their 17-year-old daughter, a junior at Clay-Battelle High School, has been bullied by students at school and on the Internet. "I'm concerned now that this will put her over the edge," said Hartley. They say the kids threatened to kill her, her horse and cat. Monday they discovered the girl's horse that she rides and races had been shot. It later died. A veterinarian confirmed that the horse died from a gun shot wound believed to be from a hand gun. The girls stepfather says something has to change. "I got him out here now covered in a blue canvas I don't want to go to Wal-Mart and cover up my daughter too something needs to be done because this bullying in school has just went on and on," said Hixenbaugh. Hartley says the principal and teacher talked to the teens involved and they were written up. They've also contacted the sheriff's department but the they say the harrassment has been going on for more than seven months and hasn't stopped. The Monongalia County Sheriff's Department is investigating the incident. Monongalia County School Superintendent Frank Devono says they have not been made aware of the issue and they will look into the matter.

Stop bullying, help teens redirect aggression

Posted: May 24, 2010 7:11 AM EDTUpdated: May 24, 2010 1:39 PM EDT

By Roslyn Giles  - email | bio

COLUMBUS, GA (WTVM) - Bullying is gaining national attention after some extreme cases involving victims committing suicide.

According to the National Institutes of Health, the biomedical research arm of the federal government, 30% of US students in grades six through ten are involved in bullying.

Studies are being done across the nation on how to get adolescents and teens to redirect their anger and frustration.

The aggression and meanness that kids display toward another student, psychiatrists say it often is a result of a student wanting to fit in with a group and they bully because the group feels it's cool. 

Psychologist Wendy Walsh, describes the bullies as having low-self esteem, missing social cues and are trying to self-identify with a group.

Advice for victims, Walsh recommends that you form an alliance with people who love you and accept you for who you are.

The solution to stop the bullying, she says kids need to be taught how to have compassion and empathy for others.

Pilots studies are being conducted in Canada on adolescents  by taking them into day cares so they can imagine what the babies are feeling with they're crying or hitting as an attempt teach compassion.

©2010 WTVM. All rights reserved.

Bully Tools: Cyber bullies, gossips flock to Formspring.me

By C. RYAN BARBER

barber.c.ryan@gmail.com

May 23, 2010 2:00 AM

With features allowing its online users to "follow" friends and send messages, Formspring.me is like a hybrid between Facebook and Twitter.

But while several of its characteristics mirror those of its fellow social networking sites in bringing people together, Formspring has been a wedge driving them apart.

Unlike Facebook and Twitter, the relatively new Formspring site allows users to send questions and comments to each others' inboxes without including their names — and without accountability for the content.

"They're rude because it's anonymous," said Josh Kimble, a junior at Falmouth High School. "They don't have to man up and say what their name is."

That distinct feature has brought the cutthroat gossip of the high school cafeteria to the computer screens of the Cape's Tweeting and friend-requesting generation with posts such as, "y r u so ugly? and "no 1 likes u in skool."

Though Formspring has gained nationwide popularity since its November launch by word of mouth and by linking with Facebook accounts, many school administrators and parents are unaware of its existence as a cyber-bullying arena.

"I monitor my daughter's computer, but I haven't seen it," said Richard Marshall of Cummaquid. "Society needs to keep an eye on it."

'I just felt attacked'

On one hand, Formspring offers a more personalized version of question-and-answer driven sites such as the Knowledge Generation Bureau (KGB.com) and Yahoo Answers, where questions range from "What goes with a short dress?" to "How many Super Bowls have the Patriots won?"

Similarly innocent questions such as, "What's your favorite color?" are asked on Formspring. But others range from the sexual to the sinister.

"After some of the comments, I've got some sexual questions ... and stuff like that," said Makenzie Ryder, a freshman at Barnstable High School. "And it's just really hard to read."

Many students said they elected to deactivate their Formspring accounts or block anonymous messages following a string of harassing posts.

"When I first made it I thought it would be fun," said Barnstable High School senior Larissa Macedo, who initially permitted anonymous messages before receiving insulting messages concerning her appearance and Brazilian heritage.

The messages become public on Formspring only if the user decides to respond to comments in their private inbox. But whether the recipient opts to ignore or delete the message, the damage is still done.

"It was really hostile and made me feel so bad about myself. I just felt attacked," Macedo said.

The option to send Macedo an anonymous post has been crossed off ever since she updated her settings to require the user's info be included in a message.

The insults have ceased.

Like so many others, state Rep. Matt Patrick, D-Falmouth, has one question pertaining to Formspring: If they were getting insulted, why wouldn't they just stay off the site?

For Macedo, the answer is simple: curiosity.

"There were some really good comments, also," she said. "People are most likely to tell the truth if they can say it anonymously."

Anonymity breeds misconduct

Unlike their children and students, many parents and school administrators said they don't see a silver lining. "My concerns are the same as any similar site, especially since things can be posted anonymously," said Alan Winrow, principal of Mashpee High School.

Steve Kraser, a housemaster at Barnstable High School, said social networking sites have joined the ranks of text messages as tools for cyber-bullies.

But he said Formspring is particularly dangerous because of the anonymity it provides.

"That makes it much easier for other people, which increases the frequency of it," Kraser said.

And with high schools relying more and more on students to report acts of bullying, the anonymous content can discourage students from notifying their teachers and counselors.

"You can't, like, show anyone— well, you can show people, but they don't know who it is because it's an anonymous question," said Katrina Manni, a freshman at Barnstable High School.

The ability to make comments without attribution has also created obstacles for disciplinary action. Because several high schools block non-academic content on the Internet, most online cyber-bullying occurs in the privacy of a student's home, outside the school's jurisdiction.

"If it was done at home off school grounds, we have no authority for disciplinary action," said John Mika, the assistant principal at Barnstable High School.

After learning about the site Friday, Mika arranged for Barnstable High School to block Formspring.

Steve Kraser, a housemaster at Barnstable High School, said the onus ultimately falls on parents to monitor their children's use — or abuse — of social networking sites and texting.

"The bottom line is people need to be more aware of what their kids do with their cell phones," he said.

Several students said they have not told their parents about their Formspring accounts because the site only became popular recently.

Ignorance proved blissful for parents who, before being interviewed, were unaware of the site.

Larry Spencer of Barnstable, the father of Barnstable High School sophomore Andrea Spencer, remembered the tragic death of Phoebe Prince, a South Hadley High School student whose suicide at age 15 was believed to have resulted from bullying via texts and Facebook by older girls who resented her dating an older football player.

Her tragic death prompted the passing of an anti-bullying curriculum signed into law earlier this month by Gov. Deval Patrick, which requires training for faculty and students and prohibits emotional, physical and online harassment.

"I think back to this girl Phoebe (Prince), and it's tragic," Spencer said, upon learning about the Web site. "Obviously, it concerns me, and I'm sure there's a lot we don't know about."

Cape Coral, FL: Mother Pushes To End Bullying In Fla. Schools

Girl, 11, Committed Suicide Because Of Bullying, Police Say

POSTED: 8:25 pm EDT May 22, 2010

UPDATED: 8:40 pm EDT May 22, 2010

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Police said an 11-year-old Treasure Coast girl who was bullied at school took her own life this week.

On Saturday, the push was on to bring an end to the growing dilemma of bullying in South Florida schools.

Port St. Lucie police said the parents of the 11-year-old girl found her hanging in her home Thursday night. The girl left behind a diary, in which she wrote about being bullied at school.

"In that diary, they have what constitutes a dying declaration, and I would go out after those kids and their parents and make an example of them," Debbie Johnston said.

Johnston said she knows all too well what it's like to have a child commit suicide after being taunted at school.

"His brother and I found him in his room," Johnston said of her son, Jeff. "He had hung himself in his closet."

Five years ago, her son killed himself in their Cape Coral home after he was bullied and harassed by a classmate for more than two years.

"Starting rumors, started making fun of the way he dressed, the way he talked, calling him names, like 'crypt keeper,'" Johnston said.

The teasing quickly turned to cyber bullying, and at only 15, Jeff took his own life. That's when his mother turned to state legislators and fought to get an anti-bullying law for the state.

"If they would give teachers the tools to stop this, we wouldn't continue to see kids die," she said.

The bill was passed two years ago and was named after Jeff. It prohibits harassment of public school students or employees during school hours, at school-sponsored events, or over school computer systems.

The law requires schools to report bullying to the police and to the parents of the bully and the victim.

Johnston said she is still fighting to get more funding for schools so that teachers and employees can be better trained to handle bullying.

Meanwhile, Port St. Lucie police are still investigating the girl's suicide.

Concord, NH: 4 charged with tattooing teen's buttocks

By MARK HAYWARD AND PAT GROSSMITH
New Hampshire Union Leader
Thursday, May. 20, 2010

CONCORD – One of four young men accused of tattooing derogatory words and pictures across the buttocks of a 14-year-old Concord High School student said the matter was a "joke that went way too far."

Donald "DJ" Wyman, 20, said he's also talked to the victim and tried to tell him how sorry he was for the incident.

"At this point, I feel absolutely terrible about what was done," a soft-spoken, respectful Wyman said when reached by telephone at his parents' Deerfield home. "It was a joke that went way too far and ended terribly."

Yesterday, Concord police announced the arrest of the four on charges stemming from the incident. Police said the four enticed the boy to a Holt Street home to get tattooed, promising to no longer pick on him if he followed through with it.

"It's appalling, it really is," said Lt. Keith Mitchell. He said two derogatory words in large lettering along with a picture were tattooed on the boy's buttocks. "We are considering it a bullying incident," Mitchell said.

From left to right, Ryan Fisk, Travis Johnston, Blake Vannest and Donald Wyman.

Police made the arrests Wednesday and Thursday. They charged:

• Blake Vannest, 18, with two counts of simple assault, endangering the welfare of a minor, tattooing without a license, indecent exposure, criminal threatening and breach of bail.
• Ryan Fisk, 19, with two counts of simple assault, endangering the welfare of a minor, tattooing without a license, sale of a controlled drug, criminal threatening and breach of bail.
• Wyman with conspiracy to commit criminal liability for the conduct of another and conspiracy to endanger the welfare of a minor.
• Travis Johnston, 18, conspiracy to endanger the welfare of a minor.

A 15-year-old Concord boy will be charged at a later date in connection with the incident, police said.

Vannest and Fisk were being held at the Merrimack County House of Correction last night on $35,000 cash bail, police said. Wyman and Johnston were released on their own recognizance.

Investigators said Fisk is a former Concord High School student and the other three attend the school. Police said the incident took place late in the morning on May 10, a Monday.

Gene Connolly, principal of Concord High School, said the boy came to school the following day and teachers overheard students talking about the incident. They alerted the school resource officer. Concord school officials agreed not to take action against Vannest, Johnston or Wyman until police conducted an investigation.

They are now under a 10-day suspension, Connolly said. Anything longer must be brought before the school superintendent, which administrators intend to do, he said.

►WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT: Arrest affidavit for tattooing incident 

Port St. Lucie, FL: Bullying May Be To Blame For Child's Suicide

Reporting
Lisa Cilli
E-mail

PORT ST. LUCIE (CBS4) ― 

Click to enlarge

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Celine Okwuone

stanne.org

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Police in Port St. Lucie are investigating the death of an 11-year old girl who may have been driven to suicide by bullying.

Police say Celina Okwuone hung herself in her closet Thursday night. The 5th grader was found by her parents.
 
Police say she used a belt to wrap around her neck and she had wrapped the belt around the metal shelving. Her father tried to lift her up and her mother tore the shelving from the wall. 

Soon after, her parents found her diary where she had written that she was being bullied at her school. 

She attended St. Anastasia Catholic School in Fort Pierce, which issued this statement Friday: 

The Diocese of Palm Beach is saddened to learn of the untimely death of one of our students from St. Anastasia School in Ft. Pierce. We grieve with the school community of St. Anastasia and ask for prayers for the student's family as well as the school community. Administration at St. Anastasia is currently in the process of notifying school parents about this devastating loss, and members of the Diocese of Palm Beach Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) Team are available at the school to minister support to the students, teachers, administrators, and parents who are coping with news of this tragic loss of life. 
Bullying related suicides have become more and more common. As a parent, there are ways to help. If an adult suspects a child is having suicidal thoughts or behaviors as a way of escaping bullying and other problems, here are some suggestions: 

• Notify school personnel if bullying is identified. 
• Seek an evaluation from a professional. Suicidal thoughts and behaviors are often linked to depression, which can be treated. 
• Listen to the child. 
• Help the child understand these feelings and thoughts are temporary and there are solutions. 
• Brainstorm on how the child can react to bullying. 
• If suicidal urges/behaviors are serious, take the child to the emergency room, don't leave him or her alone, and keep firearms, drugs and sharp objects away from the child.

Introducing Bullycide The End Result of Bullying

Submitted by Tyler Woods Ph.D. on 2010-05-21 Introducing bullycide. It is a term that is used when a suicide happens from the effects of bullying; and it happens more than you think. In fact, statistics show that that suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death among those 15 to 25 years of age and the 6th leading cause of death among those 5 to 14 years of age. To top this statistic off, a study published in Child Development magazine indicates that students who are bullied may be at a greater risk for developing antisocial behavior and depression and untreated depression is the number one cause for suicide. Researchers at Yale School of Medicine have found signs of an apparent connection between bullying, being bullied and suicide in children, according to a new review of studies from 13 countries.“While there is no definitive evidence that bullying makes kids more likely to kill themselves, now that we see there's a likely association, we can act on it and try to prevent it," said review lead author Young-Shin Kim, M.D., assistant professor at Yale School of Medicine's Child Study Center. Recent bullying statistics admit that half of all bullying incidents go unreported. Further statistics show that 100,000 students carry a gun to school bullying. More than sixty two percent of American students are bullied because of the way they look and or the way they speak, a U.S. News and World Report has stated. Other sources say that each month more than three hundred thousand children are bullied. Bullying in schools has escalated to the point where it might be considered a pandemic that crosses all national boundaries. There are several types of bullying that you can be on the lookout for in order to help our youth. • Physical – hitting, kicking, pinching, punching, scratching, spitting or any other form of physical attack. • Verbal – name calling, insulting, making racist, sexist or homophobic jokes. • Indirect – spreading spiteful stories about someone, exclusion from social groups, being made the subject of malicious rumors. • Cyber Bullying - any type of bullying that is carried out by electronic medium including text, phone calls, email, chatrooms, instant messages, and social networks. Many psychologists agree that to design effective bullying-prevention and intervention programs, they need to understand that a child's tendency toward bullying is influenced by individual, familial and environmental factors. So invite people to pay attention to their prejudgments of other peoples looks, race, religion and handicap people. May is National Mental Health Awareness month. You can help reduce stigma and be more aware events and triggers that are linked to suicide. More and more children are victims of bullycide, and the solution could be to teach tolerance. If you suspect bulling, report it and save a life.

Standing up to bullies

Amy Muldowney of the Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center (MARC) at Bridgewater State College gets expressive during a presentation to parents about bullying and cyberbullying last week at the high school. SEE RELATED STORIES.(Photo by Tom Maguire)

How do you know it's bullying?

By Rick Foster

Published: Thursday, May 20, 2010 9:36 AM EDT

Most parents, students and school administrators agree bullying is a disruptive and hurtful phenomenon whether it happens on or off school grounds.

But do they recognize it when they see it?

According to news reports following the death of a 15-year-old student at South Hadley High School, the girl hanged herself after months of verbal harassment and physical threats from several other teens. Yet the girl's agony went largely unnoticed by officials until her body was found by her 12-year-old sister.

In other cases, parents and schools have differed over what constitutes bullying and what steps should be taken to prevent it.

Carla Carey, mother of an Ahern Middle School student in Foxboro, said her daughter was the target of harassment in and out of school for a year or more. Yet school officials had trouble verifying her complaint when other teens "closed up" about the girl's mistreatment, she said.

"They thought it was all in her head," said Carey, who added that the bullying extended to hostile phone calls and messages that continued even at the 14-year-old's birthday party and during a family vacation.

The girl was eventually hospitalized for stress relating to the unrelenting abuse and police are investigating the case.

Carey is among parents working with the school administration to start a task force on bullying to educate parents and children and prevent bullying's destructive effects.

In addition, the girl's case has brought expressions of support from as far away as California from parents concerned about the issue in their communities.

While bullies and their victims have always been present in the schoolyard, Carey says it's a new ballgame today.

Traditional attitudes about "standing up for yourself" or avoiding conflict may not always compute in an era in which bullying has moved beyond the classroom and onto cell phones and the Internet.

"It's something the victim can't control and from which there's no escape," said Carey, whose daughter continued to worry throughout her hospitalization what was being said about her online.

Foxboro Superintendent Christopher Martes said local schools are taking the problem of bullying seriously and has convened a community task force with adult volunteers from the community.

Martes said parental and community support are key.

"This is something schools can't do alone," he said.

Even with the recent signing of a new state law banning bullying and cyberbullying, experts say communities need to go one step further by formally defining bullying and creating a consensus among students, teachers and parents as to what type of behavior is unacceptable.

"The biggest confusion facing adults is knowing what is conflict and what is bullying among kids," said Lisa DePonte of Community Care Services, who runs a program called "Empowering Today's Teens" at Taunton High School.

While bullying is sometimes associated with the threat of physical violence, a bully is still a bully even if mistreatment doesn't involve kicks or punches, DePonte said.

Bullying normally implies repeated behavior in which a person uses superior power - such as size, strength, popularity or standing with others - as a means to intimidate, coerce or take unfair advantage of another. The motive need not be a victim's lunch money, as of old, or cutting in the lunch line.

"Sometimes it's just to embarrass the victim and reinforce the bully's reputation and power within the group," DePonte said.

All conflict between students does not qualify as bullying, she said. But when one child gains the upper hand through coercion or intimidation, it can lead to serious and sometimes tragic consequences - both for the victim and the abusers.

In the South Hadley case, the victim ultimately took her own life after allegedly being harassed repeatedly and threatened because of her relationship with a popular boy. Nine teens are facing criminal charges in connection with the girl's abuse, including statutory rape.

The new state law prohibits bullying on school grounds, school-sponsored activities and school bus stops and requires that teachers and administrators report such incidents. It also calls for each school district to establish an anti-bullying policy and requires school districts to educate students about bullying.

The law defines bullying as repeated verbal or physical acts or gestures that cause physical or emotional harm to the victim, creates a hostile environment or disrupts school operations. The definition also includes cyber-bullying, the use of electronic devices to send or post derogatory or harassing messages about the victim.

Some legal scholars have raised the issue of whether the law might violate students' rights of free speech.

Regardless, experts who have studied bullying behavior say schools and others need to draw a clear line between bullying - chronic behavior intentionally aimed at harming another student - and playground teasing which might not include harmful intent.

"If it's simple teasing, you can recognize that on the playground," said California bullying expert Hilda Graham, who has written extensively on the subject. "You'll see kids switching roles and staying together and being friends again."

That's not true with bullying, she says.

"You can see it in kids' body language," Graham said. "The victim can't wait to get away from the bully. The looks of frustration are visible on a child's face."

The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry's website says bullying can cause severe suffering in child victims, causing them to become fearful, withdrawn or even prompting them to attempt suicide.

Bullies thrive on controlling or dominating others. Often they have been victims of physical abuse or bullying themselves or may be depressed, angry or upset about events at school or at home.

The academy recommends that parents who suspect their child is bullying others to seek immediate help before the behavior leads to more serious social, emotional or legal problems.

Parents who believe their children are being bullied should provide ample opportunities for their child to talk and discuss the problem in a positive and accepting manner.

Parents may be able to enlist the help of a child's teacher or school guidance counselor and ask school officials about increased supervision or programs designed to combat bullying.

Despite many earnest efforts on all sides, there are signs schools and parents are struggling with what constitutes bullying and what to do about it.

In Wrentham, the mother of a sixth-grade girl who asked to remain anonymous said she complained to the school department after a classmate allegedly berated and ridiculed her daughter in and out of class over a period of several months. She said the mistreatment caused her daughter to lose enthusiasm for school and her grades to plummet.

The mother said school officials declined her request to place the two girls in separate classes.

Superintendent Jeffrey Marsden, saying he could only speak in generalities, said the school district has taken an aggressive posture on bullying, including inviting a representative of the Norfolk County District Attorney's Office to speak to parents on the subject. The schools have also instituted a social competency program to encourage healthy interaction between students.

An anti-bullying policy, in the works for several months, was approved by the school committee last week.

Incidents involving students are evaluated on a case-by-case basis, Marsden said. He said that in some cases, separating classmates is justified, but that it is not a panacea for resolving all disputes. The schools do provide counseling and support to children in such situations, however.

Elizabeth Englander, director of the Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center at Bridgewater State College, said that despite the new law, individual school districts still have much work to do to get a handle on the problem of bullying and how best to "operationalize" the law in their own communities.

In an attempt to help schools, the center will hold workshops for local officials June 18 in West Roxbury and June 23 in Worcester.

Carey said she hopes the Foxboro task force envisioned by local civic leaders will help the community get a better handle on bullying. In the meantime, she said it's important for families to listen carefully to children and to go to bat with school officials if they're convinced they're children are being victimized.

The Careys have also taken their concern over the incident to local police, who have begun an investigation. Chief Edward O'Leary said an investigation into alleged harassment is ongoing.

"You have to be persistent," she said. "And vocal."

Midland, MI: Mom pulls son out of school after bullying

Posted: Tuesday, May 18, 2010 10:23 am | Updated: 12:16 pm, Tue May 18, 2010.

By Kelly Dame kdame@mdn.net |

A Breckenridge mom says she's keeping and teaching her son at home in order to keep her son safe after months of bullying, including death threats, at school.

Darcy Loomis said her 9-year-old son, a fourth-grader at Breckenridge Elementary, has been bullied by a group of other fourth-grade boys at the school since January, but school officials didn't do anything to stop the problem.

"It started with verbal teasing, then went to violence, then it went to threatening their lives," she said, adding her son has been beat up on the playground as well as spit on. One bully used a broken CD to threaten cutting another child's throat on the playground. No punishment occurred after the incident was reported to school administration.

Loomis said both her son and a bully were suspended from school after the bully beat him up and threatened to kill him in a separate incident.

"I went to the principal numerous times from the beginning," Loomis said, adding she also attended a recent school board meeting to ask the board president "what are you going to do so my child can safely go to your schools? And nothing." She said she has sent registered letters to school officials without receiving answers, and attended Monday night's board meeting seeking an answer to her question.

Breckenridge Community School Superintendent Sean McNatt said he could not talk about any specific incidents due to student confidentiality laws, but that the district's policy prohibits bullying. "We follow up with any reports of bullying," he said.

School staff are trained to recognize the signs of bullying, and to help cut down on problems administrators and teachers are "very visible" in halls and elsewhere inside the buildings, McNatt said.

Loomis said she and other parents have reported the incidents to the Breckenridge Police in hopes of stopping the problem. A message left Monday for the police chief was not returned by presstime Tuesday.

To keep her son safe, Loomis has kept him at home for the last three weeks. The boy, an honor roll student who loves attending school, is completing the school year by doing work that Loomis picks up from the school. She plans to home school her children after this year.

"If they would have dealt with this four months ago, I wouldn't be doing this," Loomis said of why she contacted local media about the problem. The bullies "will just get worse when they get older, now that they've learned they can get away with it," she said.

Oklahoma: Family says son's death result of bullying

Joleen Chaney reportingKFOR

5:39 PM CDT, May 15, 2010

PERKINS, OK - A tragic situation has shaken a small Oklahoma town to it's core. A Perkins boy, just 11 years old, is believed to have been desperate enough to take his own life.

"At this time we're looking into all avenues to try to figure out why this tragedy occurred. At this time there is no indication that bullying was a factor," Perkins Schools Superintendent James Ramsey said.

Despite what the superintendent says, friends say Ty Field was the victim of bullying and had been for weeks. His father and his friends talked with NewsChannel Four about the harassment they believe lead Ty to take his own life.

His bike is still where he left it in the open pasture around his country home - surrounded by nature - it's what 11 year old Ty Field's family says he lived for.

"He's been waiting for the past four years to go to Wyoming," his father Kirk Smalley said. "He's picked out a spot out on the wall for an antelope."

Ty was all boy, an avid hunter and was almost always wearing a smile across his little freckled face. Thursday morning was no exception.

"Yesterday morning at school he was smiling, laughing, joking before class," Smalley said.

Then the unthinkable happened.

"Nine o'clock yesterday morning, or shortly thereafter, he was laying in my bedroom floor," his father said.

The very guns Ty had learned to respect, his family says he turned on himself. His mother found his body that afternoon, but what happened in between Thursday morning at school and the time his mother found him is what family and friends believe pushed Ty to the limit.

"We were hanging out. We were sitting in the bleachers, and this kid that picks on him all the time came up to him and started being mean," his friend Trey Wallace said. "I told him he needed to leave, because we didn't want any problems, and then he and Ty started arguing."

They both ended up in the principal's office. Both were suspended for three days.

"The kid went and told the principal, and Ty ended up getting suspended for three days, and when I saw him last he was really sad and crying," Wallace said.

That's when his mother brought him home, and then she returned to work. Ty's parents say they've talked to the school before about Ty being bullied but say those concerns were always met with the same response.

"We're told boys will be boys," Smalley said.

Now Ty's family is struggling to understand why.

"You don't hold up. It's just different degrees of falling apart, you know," Smalley said.

"Don't bully," Wallace said. "It's not cool."

Ty's funeral is scheduled for 3 PM Monday at the Christian Church of Coyle. Instead of flowers, his family is asking that contributions be made to the Oklahoma State Department of Wildlife or to the Oak Grove Cemetery.

AlabamaAlabama girl jumps to death; bullying investigated

by JAY REEVES, Associated Press Writer – Thu May 13, 6:59 pm ET

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – A 15-year-old high school student who jumped to her death from an interstate overpass complained of bullying at school and never got over the death of her sister in a freak accident, factors the coroner said Thursday likely played a role in her suicide.

Chilton County Coroner Randall Yeargan said Alex Moore of Jemison left her rural home early Wednesday and walked to an overpass above Interstate 65. Several drivers on the highway saw her plunge, Yeargan said.

The death was ruled a suicide, Yeargan said, and investigators are trying to determine how much of a role bullying played. The teen's father said the girl expressed anger and grief over her sister's death in a suicide note, but did not mention bullying.

The coroner said Moore clearly was having a hard time at Jemison High School, located in a farming community in central Alabama about 40 miles south of Birmingham.

"The word we're getting is that she had been harassed or bullied by other kids. You know, kids are cruel. She wasn't in the 'in' crowd," he said. "And, she was having considerable problems with the loss of her sister. That may have played as much a role in it as the bullying."

The teen's father, Jim Moore, said in an interview with The Associated Press that relatives didn't know the extent of the bullying and teasing Alex had endured until after messages from classmates began appearing onFacebook pages following her death. She talked of teasing, bullying on the school bus and some boys "messing with her stuff" recently, he said, but it didn't seem to be a major problem.

"She was a good kid, a Christian girl. She loved animals," he said. "(But) she was overweight, she didn't have a lot of friends and wasn't in the 'in' clique."

The Chilton County school superintendent's office referred questions to Jemison High School Principal Alan Thompson, who didn't immediately return a message seeking comment.

Jim Moore said Alex's older sister, 25-year-old Lesley Anne Moore, died about two years ago after stepping into live electrical wires that had been knocked down in an automobile accident. Alex believed the driver should have been held accountable and was upset when he wasn't, Moore said.

Because of that experience, Alex didn't trust authorities and may not have been willing to tell administrators about bullying at school, Moore said. She complained to an assistant principal recently about harassment from male students, he said, but she let the matter drop after an administrator talked to the youths.

"She told her to come back to her if it happened again, and she never did," Moore said.

Moore said neither he nor Alex's mother realized what was happening at school until classmates and friends created Facebook postings and groups talking about all the bullying and harassment she endured. In some postings, students apologize for being mean to her.

One student began a group that said the teen "was made fun of daily."

In describing the group, the student forming it said, "Heartless people, our peers, teased her because she was not up to their standards. Well, not a lot of people are."

School bullying has gained new attention after two students in Massachusetts hanged themselves separately in recent months after suffering repeated harassment from classmates. In one of the cases, six students are criminally charged in connection with the student's death. A new Massachusetts law enacted last week bans bullying on school property and cyberbullying.