Loganville High students face felony charges after anti-LGBTQ+ bullying incident
LOGANVILLE, Ga. - Charges are pending against four students at Loganville High School after a bullying incident late last month. Two 14-year-olds, a 16-year-old and 17-year-old are accused of forcing another student into a bathroom stall, spraying the student with cleaning products and calling out homophobic slurs.
An incident report filed on April 1 detailed the moments the male student said he was held against his will, harassed and doused in chemicals on March 31.
"It’s horrible. Just horrible that that happened and they should be punished really through the courts, through the law system," Loganville resident William McKenzie said.
McKenzie, a part-time teacher from a neighboring school district, said he was shocked to hear what happened.
"That’s unfortunate for the person who had that happen. We don’t tolerate that at Phoenix at all," McKenzie said.
According to reports, it wasn’t the first time. Another incident happened just a week prior on March 23.
Loganville High School officials declined to comment. Walton County School Superintendent Nathan Franklin released a statement that reads:
"School leaders at Loganville High School were made aware of a student incident that occurred before Spring Break at an after school extracurricular activity. Student safety is a top priority and school officials are investigating the incident and working with law enforcement officials to ensure the district's code of conduct and legal charges are appropriately enforced."
Kelsey Juliana Hayes (Walton County Sheriff's Office)
Loganville Police Chief Dick Lowry declined to comment further but did release the following statement:
"The Loganville Police Department and particularly our School Resource Officers take cases and allegations of this nature with the utmost seriousness. We do not tolerate bullying behavior in any shape, form or fashion, for any reason, and I believe the charges made in this case reflect that stance."
The 17-year-old, Kelsey Juliana Hayes, was charged as an adult while the other three students face charges of simple battery and reckless conduct through the juvenile court system.