(NewsNation) — The family of a 14-year-old New Jersey girl who killed herself two days after being assaulted at school wants justice and accountability, including the resignation of the district’s superintendent.
Earlier this month, Adriana Kuch was bullied at her school in New Jersey by a group of students who hit her with a 20-ounce water bottle, punched her and kicked her. Two days later, she killed herself after a video of the assault was posted online.
Kuch’s family is speaking out about the teen’s tragic death.
“I would like to see the school administration take action. They dragged their feet,” said Jacob Kuch, Adriana’s brother, who spoke Friday on “CUOMO.” “I think the superintendent should resign.”
Charges were filed Friday against four students in the attack, NBC News reported.
One was charged with aggravated assault, another with harassment and two others with conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said in a statement.
The students’ names were not released.
The assault at school happened Feb. 1, and Ariana was found dead in her home two days later. Her father, Michael, criticized the school for its response in an interview with CBS New York.
“The school lied to me. They didn’t tell me she was assaulted with a weapon. They didn’t tell me she blacked out. They didn’t call police, even though they had an officer at the school. They told me that was not their policy,” Kuch said.
Dr. Triantafillos Parlapanides, superintendent of Central Regional School District, denied those claims Friday to NBC News, saying police were notified and that “teachers and safety officers intervened” in the fight.
Jennifer Ferro, Adriana’s sister-in-law, recalled the 14-year-old as a “spitfire.”
“She was stubborn, she was so funny, she always wanted to be getting into a fight with Jacob or one of her other brothers,” Ferro said with a smile. “She talked about how she wanted to be a tattoo artist in the future, and in the beginning, I didn’t believe her because you would think, ‘What college are you going to?’ and now I wish I could see that. She was so amazing.”
When Dianne Grossman heard about Adriana’s death, it immediately reminded her of the death of her own daughter, Mallory. The 12-year-old killed herself in 2017 after being bullied, and now Grossman is sounding the alarm about the situation children face in schools.
“I see Mallory in Adriana, and to be honest, it broke me. It just brought up so many raw emotions,” Grossman said. “We have a crisis in this country.”
She criticized school districts that are not more forthcoming about bullying incidents or attempt to protect themselves from legal liability.
“It’s a broken system, parents don’t have a voice, they are lied to … and our children are suffering,” Grossman said. “Our children are solving their own problems with deaths.”
Grossman pushed for years to get New Jersey’s laws changed, and last year, Mallory’s Law was approved by the state legislature. It increases anti-bullying penalties for parents and mandates school districts list specific consequences for students engaging in harassment, intimidation or bullying.
“Mallory’s Law requires the school to create a system” forcing correct reporting of the behavior, Grossman said. “I want federal legislation and of course bigger laws, especially when it comes to cyberbullying.”