A Cincinnati school district is expected to settle a lawsuit filed by the parents of an 8-year-old who hanged himself in 2017 after being bullied.
The proposed settlement, announced in a joint statement by attorneys for both parties, includes a $3 million payment to Gabriel Taye’s family along with anti-bullying measures. According to CNN, Cincinnati Public Schools does not admit any guilt in Taye’s death.
“The defendants strongly believe that neither CPS, its employees, nor the school nurse were responsible for the tragic death of Gabriel Taye,” Aaron Herzig, an attorney for the district, said in a statement. “CPS embraces the goal of eliminating bullying within schools, as well as continuing to refine and improve reporting, management, and training processes related to incidents of bullying.”
One of the focal points of the lawsuit is security footage taken two days before Taye’s death that shows him falling unconscious in a school bathroom. The footage shows multiple students walking over Taye and poking him before an adult enters. More adults enter the bathroom and kneel down to get a better look at his condition. Eventually, the boy stands up on his own and leaves with the adults.
The lawsuit alleges the school withheld the bathroom incident from Taye’s parents. But, the district maintains the school nurse contacted his mother to pick him up and take him to the hospital.
Taye was kept out of school the day after he passed out in the bathroom but was back in school the day after. That afternoon his mom found him hanged with a necktie in his bedroom.
The Cincinnati Board of Education is to vote on the settlement Monday night. The family’s attorney, Krista Boyle, expects the board to vote in favor of the settlement.
