Parents Upset Over Bullying Take Out Newspaper Ad

Tuesday, May 17, 2011 8:25 AM

WBNS-10TV

BALTIMORE, Ohio — A bullying controversy in a Fairfield County school district continued Monday, as parents concerned over a student who they say is terrorizing their children took more action in an effort to have him removed from the middle school.

Several parents in the Liberty Union-Thurston School district said that administrators are not taking their concerns seriously enough, 10TV's Tanisha Mallett reported.

The bullying issues in Baltimore gained attention last month when a parent upset over the district's handling of the situation confronted Superintendent Paul Mathews in his office. The father was charged with disorderly conduct after the incident.

On Monday afternoon, Mathews said the school board would address the issues during a closed meeting prior to the next regular school board meeting, but Bob Denny, who has a child in the district, said that is not soon enough.

"I said it to you before, the kid is a threat and we are not backing off of that," Denny said.

Denny and another parent have paid to put an ad concerning the matter in a local newspaper. They have also created an e-mail address and urged parents whose children have had run-ins with the student to share their stories, Mallett reported.

"He is a threat to my family so I need some answers," Denny said, "and we are going to pursue it until we get some answers."

Baltimore police confirmed that the student, who 10TV is not identifying because he is a minor, was arrested Friday for a probation violation. Police records show he was on probation for an incident that occurred outside of school, Mallett reported.

The boy's father said his lawyer advised him not to speak about the case, but he did say that the students who say they are victims were not blameless in the situation.

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