A 10-year-old Texas boy killed himself after he was relentlessly tormented at school by his classmates — who even told the child to “kill yourself,” his grieving mother said.
The family of fifth-grader Kevin Reese Jr. — who hanged himself in a closet of his Houston-area home on Jan. 21 — is now urging schools to address bullying, news station KTRK reported.
His mom, Crystal Smith, said Kevin was a “goofy child,” but often struggled with being picked on at Robinson Elementary School.
“They wrote on his tablet to ‘Kill yourself, you don’t belong here,’” Smith said. “When it got physical back in November, he came home crying because he didn’t fight back and one of the boys punched him several times coming from recess.”
She reported the incident to school officials, who told her there was no evidence of a “physical fight,” the local ABC affiliate reported.
“They told me they never found any bullying going on,” Smith said.
The taunting at school reportedly continued, the mom said. Then, two months later, the young boy took his own life while his mom was out of town for work.
“He just had enough,” Smith told the station. “He just had enough and he felt that he was backed into a corner.”
Smith said she’s speaking out to raise awareness about preventing child suicide.
“Pay attention to your child, don’t assume that things are handled at the school, stay on top of it until you see something come out on the end,” Smith said.
