Posted on 05/21/2005 3:27:01 PM PDT by tuffydoodle
Pool incident leaves student badly injured
By Don Chance
Special to the Star-Telegram
A seventh-grader who cannot swim remained in critical condition at a Fort Worth hospital Friday, three days after being pushed into the deep end of a Bridgeport city pool during an end-of-school outing, authorities said.
A 13-year-old classmate may face juvenile assault charges, Bridgeport Police Chief Randy Singleton said Friday.
Luis Gonzales, 13, was with other seventh-graders from Bridgeport Middle School at the Harwood Park pool Tuesday, Singleton said.
The classmate "snuck up behind him and pushed him in and watched as the victim sank to the bottom of the pool," Singleton said. "He made no attempt to rescue him or notify lifeguards or teachers standing around.
"The boy who pushed [Gonzales] in knew he couldn't swim."
Witnesses told investigators that other students swam down and pulled Gonzales from the water unconscious, Singleton said. The teen has not regained consciousness since being admitted to Cook Children's Medical Center, Singleton said.
A teacher started CPR, Bridgeport school Superintendent Richard O'Hara said. City Parks Coordinator Anndra Mann said lifeguards assisted.
"The lifeguards did all the proper procedures," Mann said. "We're very proud of how they handled the situation."
The accused boy spent Tuesday night in the Grayson County Juvenile Detention Center in Sherman before being released to his parents, officials said. He appeared before Wise County Court at Law Judge Melton Cude for a detention hearing Thursday and was allowed to leave with his parents.
He is not being named because of his age.
"It's a tragic deal," Singleton said. "We need to make sure that this other boy realizes that his actions were the cause of the injury."
Cude said authorities have not determined what charges to file against the accused boy.
"There's going to be some scratching of heads and looking at this thing from all standpoints," Cude said.
Through a relative, the Gonzales family declined to be interviewed.
Why? He is old enough to know what he was doing.
We need to make sure that this other boy realizes that his actions were the cause of the injury
Politically correct BS.
They need to make the boy understand he is going to jail for a long time because of his actions (or we can hope he is)
Considering my son was charged with assault for one punch, what is the dilemma here? Sounds like attempted murder to me.
It's not a tragedy, it's a crime.
May face = will walk
Juvenile = lenient
Assault = murderous intentions will be overlooked
I remember one time up at one of the Finger Lakes of NY. I could swim, but was not a great swimmer. There was a waterfall, and a natural bench behind it. Me and an Uncle were sitting there, and without warning shoved me into the 150 foot column of water. It pounded me down to the bottom- I somehow broke out of the current, and I remember being mere milliseconds from drowning when I broke surface.
Nobody should be shoved into water without time to fill their lungs with air.
On the other hand, there are probably other factors involved here. Lack of parenting, lack of Ten Commandments in school or moral standards of any sort. If you're told you're a victim all your life...and is the attacker an illegal alien by the way? If so, or even if he's just Latino, then the MSM and dems have been at great pains to portray him as victimized by rich whites. Maybe he can sue somebody.
That was one insane post.
I understand that 13-year-old boys do stupid, impulsive things such as pushing people into pools, but watching the kid drown is just plain evil.
Why? Is the boy retarded? Of course his actions caused the injury!! What kind of lame Police Chief is this?
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