A parent claims her 16-year old daughter suffered serious facial injuries during a bathroom brawl at a California high school — witnessed by a security guard who allegedly “stood by, smiled and did nothing” to stop the fight.
The October 18 incident was caught on a now-viral video which showed a Baldwin Park High School junior being mercilessly punched in the face as her alleged attacker — also a female student — grabbed the 16-year old’s long brunette hair
The video also captured a clip of the school security officer, who appears to be smiling, as he stood behind the group of students gathered at the doorway of the girls’ bathroom.
The brief clip did not show the male security guard breaking up the fight, but did not include the entire incident and its aftermath.
Lawyer Brian Claypool, who represents the victim and her family, alleged the security guard— who goes by the name “Mando” — may have even been implicit in the incident.
“I find it hard to believe that this was not planned because all of the students who went directly to the bathroom at 1 p.m.,” Claypool told The Post.
“The security guard, in my opinion, had to have known because that is his area and both boys and girls were in that bathroom watching this fight while he stood back.
“All of these facts suggest that maybe this was a planned attack, orchestrated ahead of time and the security guard allegedly aided and facilitated to carry out the attack.”
Claypool said the victim’s mom called the police, and when she showed up to the school campus, the principal told her he not know about the fight. They also claim school officials did not provide any medical attention to the beaten girl.
Claypool said he has filed a claim for damages against the school district, which is the initial step before filing a lawsuit against a public entity.
When approached by The Post, The Baldwin Park Unified School District said: “The safety of our students is the District’s highest priority. We cannot comment further on any potential litigation.”
The school district has up to 60 days to respond to the claim before the family proceeds with a lawsuit, Claypool said.
Claypool, who has handled other bullying cases in California, told The Post his teen client suffered a possible fractured nose and other injuries. The teen’s mother has taken her out of Baldwin Park High and the teen is now being homeschooled because she is mentally traumatized.
The family has filed a police report with the Baldwin Hills Police Department.
“She is going to be dealing with this trauma for the rest of her life,” the attorney said of his teen client.
Claypool said he urges Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón to review the case to determine whether the security guard also should be held criminally liable.
“The fact that he just stood there and did absolutely nothing should be seen as aiding and abetting for someone else to commit a crime,” Claypool said. “He allegedly facilitated the other girl to commit this assault and battery and is also responsible for carrying out the crime.”
The Baldwin Park incident is among a worrying uptick in serious school fights seriously injuring pupils across the country.
A 17-year old Las Vegas teen died last week after he came to the defense of a “smaller” friend who was being mercilessly attacked by a mob of 15 kids at Rancho High School.
Video footage from the November 1 Las Vegas attack showed Jonathan Lewis getting savagely punched and kicked by the group, while the alleged attackers threw the smaller student into a trash can.
Police found Lewis bleeding from the head. He was placed on life support at University Medical Center where he later died less than two weeks after the deadly brawl.