Current:Home > News6 Massachusetts students accused of online racial bullying including 'mock slave auction'-LoTradeCoin
6 Massachusetts students accused of online racial bullying including 'mock slave auction'
View Date:2024-12-23 23:41:29
Six Massachusetts students have been charged in "hateful, racist online" Snapchat bullying incidents, officials said.
Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni announced that his office is pursuing criminal charges against six minors from Southwick for the February incidents that included "facilitating and participating in a hateful, racist online chat that included heinous language, threats, and a mock slave auction."
“Hatred and racism have no place in this community. And where this behavior becomes criminal, I will ensure that we act, and act with swift resolve, as we did here, to uncover it and bring it to the light of justice. There is no question that the alleged behavior of these six juveniles is vile, cruel, and contemptible," Gulluni said.
According to the district attorney's announcement, between the night of February 8 and the morning of February 9, a group of 8th-grade students created a Snapchat group chat where several of them shared racist and hateful comments, "including notions of violence toward people of color, racial slurs, derogatory pictures and videos, and a mock slave auction directed at two particular juveniles."
Group chat reported to school officials
The group chat and some of the comments discussed were reported to Southwick school authorities on Friday, Feb. 9. Several students were suspended "as an emergency removal" after a review by school personnel the following Monday, Gulluni said.
Several students were formally suspended later that week. The district attorney learned what happened on Thursday, Feb, 15.
"The facts that he was given, and the nature of the alleged incident, compelled him to immediately direct members of his office’s Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit to investigate," the announcement from his office said.
Students charged
Gulluni said he met personally with the victims and their families.
The identities of the students charged in the incident will not be released because they are minors. All 6 are charged with threatening to commit a crime, two are charged with interference with civil rights, and one of those two was also charged with witness interference.
"Seeing it, and facing the reality that these thoughts, that this ugliness, can exist within middle school students, here, in this community, in 2024 is discouraging, unsettling, and deeply frustrating," Gulluni said. "We intend to appropriately punish those whose alleged behavior displayed a capacity for such hatred and cruelty and, ultimately, amounted to chargeable criminal conduct."
veryGood! (258)
Related
- As US Catholic bishops meet, Trump looms over their work on abortion and immigration
- Federal judge rejects request from Oregon senators who boycotted Legislature seeking to run in 2024
- Finland reports a rush of migrant crossings hours before the reclosure of 2 border posts with Russia
- Prince Harry Speaks Out After Momentous Win in Phone Hacking Case
- GM recalling big pickups and SUVs because the rear wheels can lock up, increasing risk of a crash
- Nebraska priest and man accused of fatal stabbing had no connection, prosecutor says
- UNC-Chapel Hill names former state budget director as interim chancellor
- After 40 witnesses and 43 days of testimony, here’s what we learned at Trump’s civil fraud trial
- Noem’s Cabinet appointment will make a plain-spoken rancher South Dakota’s new governor
- Israeli strike on school kills Al Jazeera cameraman in southern Gaza, network says
Ranking
- Beyoncé's Grammy nominations in country categories aren't the first to blur genre lines
- A Tesla driver to pay $23K in restitution for a 2019 Los Angeles crash that killed 2 people
- Matthew Perry Was Reportedly Clean for 19 Months Before His Death
- Israeli military opens probe after videos show Israeli forces killing 2 Palestinians at close range
- Asian sesame salad sold in Wegmans supermarkets recalled over egg allergy warning
- New York Giants star partners with tech platform to promote small-business software
- Federal agents seize illegal e-cigarettes worth $18 million at LAX
- Max Scherzer has back surgery, will miss much of 2024 season for Rangers
Recommendation
-
Sister Wives’ Madison Brush Details Why She Went “No Contact” With Dad Kody Brown
-
The Best Gifts for Couples Who Have Run Out of Ideas
-
A Thai senator linked to a Myanmar tycoon is indicted for drug trafficking and money laundering
-
Money. Power. Women. The driving forces behind fantasy football's skyrocketing popularity.
-
Brush fire erupts in Brooklyn's iconic Prospect Park amid prolonged drought
-
Taraji P. Henson talks about her Hollywood journey and playing Shug Avery in The Color Purple
-
Federal agents seize illegal e-cigarettes worth $18 million at LAX
-
Apple adds Stolen Device Protection feature to new iOS beta