Parents protested outside a New Jersey city hall while high school students walked out of classes as both groups demand the district superintendent resign following the stabbing of an 11-year-old boy outside of a school, allegedly at the hands of a fellow young student.
The parents demonstrating outside the city hall building in Pert Amboy not only called for the person in charge of the schools to step down, but they are also calling for extra security for their children in the wake of the stabbing of Smailyn Jimenez near the campus of Samuel Shull Middle School.
Student and parents both say that the district has been keeping them in the dark about the situation.
"We are tired of always just put under the rug and nobody telling us what's happening in this school," said Darlin Morricete, a senior at Perth Amboy High School.
A mother told NBC New York that her middle school-aged son has been traumatized by the attack on Feb. 22, saying her son is "scared, he doesn't understand why it's happening."
The calls to action come in the wake of last Wednesday's bloodshed when another 11-year-old student used a kitchen knife to stab Jimenez in the stomach on his typical walk home from school. The suspect and victim in the case attend the same school.
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The victim is now recovering. Police arrested the boy believed to be responsible for the attack, charging him with an act of juvenile delinquency for offenses equal to attempted murder and aggravated assault if they were committed by an adult.
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The city and the district released a joint statement, saying in part, "We have to work together to provide a set of interventions and solutions that will work for our students…..including mental health services, counseling, and peer-to-peer interventions."
A good Samaritan happened to catch sight of the 11-year-old victim last week and rushed to his aid.
Zenovia Cruz was driving to the school to pick up her niece when she spotted the boy crying out for help. That’s when Smailyn lifted his shirt to show her his stab wounds.
"I saw he was screaming, with blood on his hands," said Cruz. "I brought him into the car...I saw an ambulance, ran out the car, flagging them down...I’m completely heartbroken, I haven’t slept knowing if he’s OK or not."
Had it not been for Cruz's quick thinking, Smailyn stood no chance of surviving, said his father, Juan Jimenez.
