Assault

[nemesis722]

We live in Pennsylvania...

My 15 year old daughter is a victim of a violent assault. Our issue is that today I was notified by our advocate that the police didn't press charges against all the people that were involved in this assault. The night it happened she was beaten unconscious, they ripped every piercing she had out of her ears and face, they broke her nose, and gave her a concussion. She was taken to the ER where we sat in the ER waiting room with everyone else, and she was actively bleeding. The police never showed up to question her, I took my own pictures and still have them of what she looked like that night. 12 hours later these kids and 10 of their friends came back to my house to attack her again. Yes, the police never arrested any of them. I told them police I wanted to press charges against all of them, they said OK. The next day the mother of 2 of the kids came to my house to confront my child. The police were notified again and nothing was done. I found out today that they only pressed charges against one of the 3 kids that were involved. The other 2 are free to keep attacking my child. I had to remove her from public school and put her in cyber school. She has no friends due to this and can't leave the house. She is in therapy to help her deal with it, she has panic attacks and nightmares every night. they attacked her at school a week later. Can I sue anyone and everyone? I feel that no one did their job!

 

[Antigone*]

We live in Pennsylvania...

My 15 year old daughter is a victim of a violent assault. Our issue is that today I was notified by our advocate that the police didn't press charges against all the people that were involved in this assault. The night it happened she was beaten unconscious, they ripped every piercing she had out of her ears and face, they broke her nose, and gave her a concussion. She was taken to the ER where we sat in the ER waiting room with everyone else, and she was actively bleeding. The police never showed up to question her, I took my own pictures and still have them of what she looked like that night. 12 hours later these kids and 10 of their friends came back to my house to attack her again. Yes, the police never arrested any of them. I told them police I wanted to press charges against all of them, they said OK. The next day the mother of 2 of the kids came to my house to confront my child. The police were notified again and nothing was done. I found out today that they only pressed charges against one of the 3 kids that were involved. The other 2 are free to keep attacking my child. I had to remove her from public school and put her in cyber school. She has no friends due to this and can't leave the house. She is in therapy to help her deal with it, she has panic attacks and nightmares every night. they attacked her at school a week later. Can I sue anyone and everyone? I feel that no one did their job!

Get a restraining order against all of the kids involved. Get your daughter into therapy.

You don't know that they police did not do their job. The case is not over yet.

 

[nemesis722]

Also, I just want to add that normally I am not the type of person to take action like this. This occurred back in September and I was letting the police do their jobs. I found out today that they aren't and that they just wanted to get the boy that was involved and forgot about what really happened and just didn't care.

 

[nemesis722]

To Antigone: There is one restraining order against one of the kids...the only one the police went after.

 

[Antigone*]

To Antigone: There is one restraining order against one of the kids...the only one the police went after.

You could go to the court for the others. There is nothing to stop you from doing that.

 

[mistoffolees]

Get a restraining order against all of the kids involved. Get your daughter into therapy.

You don't know that they police did not do their job. The case is not over yet.

You could also consider a civil case against the other kids.

 

[tranquility]

Can I sue anyone and everyone?

Yes. But, the only ones you should sue are the people who hurt your daughter.

 

[You Are Guilty]

To the extent there are claims for civil damages, they would be against the attackers (and potentially their parents), not against the police department.

 

[CdwJava]

We live in Pennsylvania...

My 15 year old daughter is a victim of a violent assault. Our issue is that today I was notified by our advocate that the police didn't press charges against all the people that were involved in this assault.

The police do not "press charges." The police forward reports to the DA and request a complaint. Whether they requested a complaint against all the parties involved, who knows? The problem is that if they cannot establish the elements of the offense against an individual they are not going to seek charges. It could well be that they were unable to make a decent case against ALL of the parties. It could be that the matter is still being investigated. It could be that some of the other parties have cooperated and dimed off someone more critical to the attack.

Perhaps you should contact the police department and ask to speak to the investigator or his/her supervisor directly? That way you can find out why not everyone was charged.

The police never showed up to question her, I took my own pictures and still have them of what she looked like that night.

Do you know why? Did someone call the police to report the assault? To tell the police she was at that particular hospital? I've had cases where people were under the impression the police were called but no call was received (or, at least, documented anywhere).

12 hours later these kids and 10 of their friends came back to my house to attack her again. Yes, the police never arrested any of them.

Were they on scene when the cops arrived? Were they doing anything at that time to be arrested for?

How were the police supposed to know who had been involved in the earlier assault? Was your daughter with you at home to point out her attackers?

How old were the suspect kids? Their age may have rendered a custodial arrest unlikely. Were they detained and turned over to parents? or, were they sent on their way even after your daughter pointed them out and articulated what each one did to her?

The next day the mother of 2 of the kids came to my house to confront my child. The police were notified again and nothing was done.

What did the mom do? Wanting to talk to or even yell at your daughter is not - by itself - a criminal act.

She has no friends due to this and can't leave the house.

Why does her being a victim mean she has no friends?

She is in therapy to help her deal with it, she has panic attacks and nightmares every night. they attacked her at school a week later. Can I sue anyone and everyone? I feel that no one did their job!

Yes, you can sue her attackers. The burden of proof in a civil case is made through a preponderance of evidence - much less than the standard of reasonable doubt applicable in criminal cases.

There is no legal requirement for the police to arrest anyone in a criminal case. There is no legal requirement for the police to even conduct a thorough investigation ... heck, for the most part, they are not even required to do ANY investigation. Besides, you do not know that they did NOT conduct a thorough investigation. Knowing who committed a crime and being able to PROVE it are different issues. It might very well be the prosecutor that rejected the charges against the others. In this instance, I do not see a claim against the police department.

You can consult an attorney and make a claim against the kids and their parents, but, ask yourself: Can they afford to pay any award? You might be out attorneys fees and if they have no assets or income, collecting might be impossible.