Local

Father: Son is target of bullies at Washington Co. elementary school

CHARLEROI, Pa. — A father says his son is the target of bullies for the past two years at Charleroi Elementary School.

"He said, 'I stuck up for myself like you told me, and they told me they were going to kill me,'" the father told Channel 11's Pamela Osborne.

Channel 11 is not using the father's name because that would identify his son.

The father said the second-grader suffered a broken arm after being pushed from a slide on the school's playground.  He said he wasn't notified about the incident or his son's injury until he picked his son up from school.

"They knew.  They let him suffer all day," he said.

The latest incident is even more frustrating, the father said.

"They told him they were going to slit his throat and shoot him in the face," the father said.

The father said the threat was made by two boys on a school bus Tuesday and on Wednesday, he followed up with the school.

"Nobody was available to talk to me, and they couldn't tell me if my son was safe to be at school," he said.

Channel 11 contacted Charleroi Area Schools to help the family get answers.

Acting Superintendent Reid Smith said on the day the threats were made, elementary school leaders spent time with the kids to find out what happened and disciplinary action was taken.

"He wants to go there, have fun and do things kids do.  He doesn't want to have to worry about being picked on or if he's going to get hurt," said the father.

The district added the following in a written statement:

"Students, even at the elementary school level, must realize that their actions have consequences and the resulting hurt feelings are very powerful."