Adriana Kuch, Bayville, NJ girl commits suicide two days after video of herself being beaten (see below) at Central Regional High School. A family now seeks redress in the aftermath of ongoing bullying.
A 14-year-old New Jersey high school student killed herself after cellphone video was posted online ( see middle of page below – viewer discretion warned) showing a group of girls beating her — a suicide her father believes was fueled by longtime bullying as the parent now seeks to hold those accountable, including the school which had a history of ongoing bullying, accountable for his daughter’s death.
Adriana Kuch, who attended Central Regional High School in Berkeley Township, was found dead at her Bayville home two days after she was beaten up on February 1, police said.
Video showed several students attacking the teen, hitting her with a water bottle, as she walked with her boyfriend in a school hallway, Patch reported.
In the 20-second clip, a person is heard yelling: ‘That’s what you get, you stupid a— b—!’
The assailants are seen punching, kicking and pulling Adriana’s hair, while others laugh and record the vicious assault, according to ABC 7.
NJ county prosecutor met with school officials to discuss ‘failed handling’ after bullied teen, 14, took her own life
Adriana Kuch attackers & bullies identified on social media in planned attack
School official: ‘I don’t believe a police report was done.
‘They think it’s fun to attack people and take videos and post them,’ Adriana’s father, Michael Kuch, told the station.
‘Getting hit with a water bottle didn’t hurt Adriana, what hurt her was the embarrassment and humiliation, they just kept coming at her,’ the dad said.
‘My daughter actually blacks out and they don’t call an ambulance, they take her to the nurse’s office,’ Kuch told ABC 7, adding Adriana had ‘never been in a fight before, she’s 98 pounds, 5-2 and she loves everybody.’
In the aftermath of the beating attack, three girls were charged with third-degree felony assault and a fourth was charged with disorderly conduct, News 12 New Jersey reported.
Schools Superintendent Triantafillos Parlapanides told the news outlet police were not called after the attack, citing school policy.
‘I don’t believe a police report was done. We normally just suspend. If a parent wants to press charges, they can with the police,’ he said, adding, ‘We’re not going to double-whammy a kid where they are suspended and then police charges as well.’
Kuch was outraged at the school’s response, telling NBC New York: ‘A kid is assaulted with a weapon and their policy is not to call the police or file a report.’
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Four teens who attacked Adriana Kuch have charges upgraded as school blames victim
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This is a whole new level of bullying. I’m glad the four teenage girls where charged for the beating of Adriana Kuch (14), who committed suicide two days later after this video was spread online. One is now charged with aggravated assault, and could face court as an adult, one… https://t.co/6tO4s8Xb0n pic.twitter.com/4QlwldDBtS
— DeL2000 (@DeL2000) February 11, 2023
‘That’s what you get, you stupid a— b—!’
On Facebook, Kuch posted images of the assault.
‘These 4 girls planned and executed an attack. If you watch the videos I have, they are laughing while talking about what they are going to do,’ the dad wrote, adding he ‘had to take my daughter covered in blood to the local police station.’
‘If the school contacted the police and filed a report and conducted an investigation, these videos could have been discovered immediately,’ he wrote.
‘I want the entire world to know what these animals did to my daughter. I will not sleep until their family has to watch them stand in front of a judge and plead guilty,’ he added.
Kuch also demanded accountability from the Ocean County school district for harassment and bullying that he says Adriana suffered for a long time.
On Wednesday, more than 200 students at Central Regional High walked out of class in protest of the incident — demanding action over what they described as a pattern of bullying that the district ignores, ABC 7 reported.
History of bullying at the school and apathy
‘Adriana took her own life because nobody at the school was able to help or care or step in,’ sophomore Roman Valez told the station. ‘I would actually like to teach the people who bully what they’re actually doing and how it affects.’
The district mentioned Adriana’s death in a note on its website and said crisis counselors were available, but students claim they were not made personally aware of that.
‘Nobody was supposed to know Adriana killed herself,’ student Lance Jones told the outlet, adding that word spread about the tragedy.
Students and parents claim Adriana was not the only victim of bullying. Last April, a student was attacked in the school cafeteria, suffering an injury that left her unable to fight back, her mom previously told Patch.
Others shared similar accounts, claiming they or people they knew had been bullied and the district did nothing about it.
The district posted a letter on its website saying, in part, that ‘we fully understand that students, staff and the community are hurting for the loss of such a young lady with a bright future.’
Schoolgirl remembered
It said a moment of silence was held outside before the students’ rally.
‘To ensure the health, safety and well-being for all students, there will not be any rallies in the future without prior administration approval otherwise action will be taken in accordance with policy,’ it said, adding: ‘It is time to start the healing process and we want to send our thoughts and prayers to the family.’
An online obituary for Adriana says the native of Toledo, Ohio, ‘adored all animals, she helped children with special needs, she loved jogging with her brothers and was a true nature lover. Adriana also enjoyed her walks in the woods, skateboarding, riding dune buggies and dirt bikes.’
A wake was set for Friday at the Mastapeter Memorial Home in Bayville. Her funeral will be private.
