A 16-year-old transgender student from California is being charged with battery for retaliating against a group of relentless bullies who reportedly spit in her face. The altercation, which can be seen in the video below, shows three female students attacking Jewlyes, the transgender student, who CBS is exclusively referring to as “a male.”
According to CBS (which we’ll mention again, is referring to a transgender woman as “male“), all four students involved have been suspended and two of the bullies who initiated the altercation reported suffering from “minor scratches” and “pain to her wrist.”
Due to the injuries Jewlyes inflicted in self-defense, Senior Deputy District Attorney Daniel J. Cabral is charging her with battery. A Change.org petition in Jewlyes’ defense has been set up by her sister, and offers another side of the story:
One of the girls who attacked Jewlyes had repeated bullied her – even spitting gum in her face. Jewlyes sought help from the assistant principal in fear of her physical safety but the issue was not properly addressed, no necessary action was taken by the administration. The bullying continued.
Extra, Extra! A school district is claiming to protect their students by encouraging them to report bullying to administrators that don’t care! You read it here first, folks!
“We want parents and students to know that if anyone ever feels threatened or bullied or that they are in danger in any way, they can go to the principal or a teacher and let them know,” said Marin Trujillo, a spokesman for the West Contra Costa Unified School District.
Both Trujillo and Cabral have denied comment on the situation, which will hopefully change now that Jewlyes’ story seems to be gaining more traction with the media. Maybe now CBS will also stop referring to Jewlyes, a trans woman, as “a male”?
[Image: GLAAD]
2eo
I’m unfamiliar with US law, would posting the names and addresses of her bullies and the faculty staff who let it happen be illegal?
brady234
Did the CBS affiliate change their video? They use female pronouns throughout the entire video above.
MikeE
my heart is pounding so hard right now.
I just want to go down there and beat the living shit out of those bullying little bitches.
Caleb in SC
@2eo: It depends on the jurisdiction. It would be illegal to post the names of the bullies if they are minors in most jurisdictions. As for the faculty that allowed it to happen, they are fair game.
Thomathy
@2eo: You seem to like sleuthing. And I’m not sure you actually care about the legality of posting that information from where you are …
If you don’t find an ethical dilemma in doing it, why don’t you?
Thomathy
@Caleb in SC: It may be illegal in some jurisdictions, but if the laws are anything like those in Canada, then it’s only illegal for that information to be made public by news media. A private citizen could, if I understand correctly, name names and even do so in a public forum without consequence.
2eo
@Thomathy: I’m currently helping the flow of information regarding the whereabouts of the police officers who murdered homeless mentally ill man Kelly Thomas.
http://imgur.com/gallery/dNXOvij
http://universalfreepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/01-kelly-1.jpg
I’ll do every single thing I can to make sure the officers who murdered him are executed.
DShucking
This is being reported very dishonestly. Yes, she had been bullied previously but she initiated the physical assault. I saw one of her interviews. She’s not entirely believable and she is ill-equipped to give interviews without an adult present.
Ogre Magi
What is Jewlyes last name? I want to look up that petition her sister created
DShucking
@Ogre Magi: This is Queerty, where you have to go someplace else to get the details of any given story, like the name’s of the people being reported on.
KDub
I read a far less subjective version of this story, and apparently the cam video actually shows that he initiated the physical confrontation against the girls. A couple problems with spinning Mr. Gutierrez as a victim: 1) In the eyes of the law, he is still male…a male that just physically assaulted more than one woman. 2) You can’t just put your hands on someone just because they’re teasing you.
DShucking
@KDub: You have to see his interview on CNN. Something very shady about him.
kevininbuffalo
First it wouldn’t be the first time Queerty had to backtrack on a story.
Second if “she”has a y chromosome “she’s” male and suffering from delusions.
Ogre Magi
@DShucking: I can get it to play, how was he shady?
DShucking
@Ogre Magi: He was trying to not answer direct questions about the details but he gets tripped up. He tried to avoid the question about whether or not it was these girls who had bullied him before because it wasn’t and lied about having thrown the first punch. He just kept using GLBT equality catchphrases instead of answering questions that would have made him look bad.
GeriHew
@kevininbuffalo: So do you think women with Androgen insensitivity syndrome are male and suffering from delusions?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hPN1bmbyXw