The mother and father of a 10-year-old Indiana boy who allegedly dedicated suicide after relentless bullying have filed a wrongful dying lawsuit towards his faculty.

Sam and Nicole Teusch — the mother and father of Sammy Teusch, who was discovered lifeless by his household on Could 5, 2024 — filed the lawsuit in Hancock County Circuit Court docket on Tuesday towards the Greenfield-Central Neighborhood College Company and Greenfield-Central Neighborhood College Company Board of Trustees.

Within the go well with (by way of WRTV), the boy’s mother and father allege “callous indifference” by the District and plenty of its staff, who they declare had been “repeatedly knowledgeable in regards to the bullying of Sammy Teusch (‘Sammy’) by college students underneath the District’s supervision, and but did nothing to handle it.”

“As a direct and proximate results of the District’s and these people’ gross dereliction of arguably their most necessary obligation, Sammy took his personal life on Could 5, 2024,” they allege within the go well with.

Remembering their son as a “good, humorous and loving boy, who liked to fish, play with robots, play soccer, be outdoor, and lead his household round to assemble up trash at any time when they went to the seashore or on a nature hike,” the Teusches declare that when he started faculty at Weston Elementary in Greenfield, Indiana, he “was subjected to bullying by his classmates.”

Per the go well with, Sammy was known as “Dahmer,” in reference to serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. His mother and father declare that when the boy complained to his instructor in regards to the title, “her solely response was that, in her opinion, Sammy did considerably resemble Jeffrey Dahmer.”

The docs declare Sammy would “flip his desk over in an try to attract his instructor’s consideration to the bullying,” however his “cry for assist didn’t work” — alleging the boy would as a substitute be disciplined for “what she perceived to be disruptive conduct.”

After mother and father additionally allegedly complained to the principal, they are saying she allowed Sammy to have lunch in her workplace — however famous, “It’s unknown whether or not [the principal] took any disciplinary actions in direction of the bullies, or knowledgeable their mother and father.”

When Sammy shifted to Greenfield Intermediate College as he entered fourth grade, his mother and father stated the bullying continued.

“Throughout breakfast interval, Sammy was chased all through the varsity, and would try to cover in a rest room stall, typically refusing to return out,” reads the go well with, earlier than detailing how he was allegedly “bodily assaulted” by one other scholar. The scholar is accused of choking and punching the opposite boy within the face, allegedly leading to abrasions and swelling.

One other scholar is accused of hitting Sammy within the head with an iPad, leaving the boy with a black eye and neck and shoulder accidents, per the docs. That scholar was additionally accused of stuffing Sammy right into a rubbish can.

The go well with claims the boy’s bullies additionally made enjoyable of his glasses and enamel, calling him “Beaver Tooth.”

In response to the lawsuit, roughly 20 reviews had been made by Sammy’s mother and father to his lecturers, principal, vice principal and college counselor.

“Regardless of data of the continued bullying and harassment, the District didn’t take acceptable corrective motion. This callous disregard for Sammy’s security exasperated him, at one level telling [his father], ‘They do not take heed to me daddy,’” the go well with alleges.

The go well with additionally claims the varsity participates in “sufferer shaming and sufferer blaming,” alleging administration maintained the bullying was a “Sammy downside,” he was the instigator and he was being bullied “due to his ‘psychological issues.’”

On Could 4, per the docs, one of many alleged bullies known as a mutual good friend who was visiting Sammy’s sister Scarlett — and “threatened Sammy saying, ‘Oh, you wait till Monday. I am getting you. I am getting you.”

“However [the alleged bully] by no means bought the chance to hold by means of on his threats. On Could 5, 2024, at roughly 11:30 a.m., Sammy was discovered hanging from his bunk mattress by his 13- year-old brother Xander Teusch,” reads the docs.

“After calling 911, [his father] went to Sammy, grabbed him and stated ‘Oh my God, oh my God, no, no, no, no, no.’ Sam began doing compressions, respiration into Sammy, and making an attempt to get a heartbeat.”

The kid was pronounced lifeless on the hospital.

In response to the lawsuit, the alleged bully who made the Could 4 cellphone name “acknowledged his duty for Sammy taking his life.” A Snapchat screenshot was additionally included within the docs, exhibiting somebody say, “It is all my fault for bullying him.” The go well with provides, “This admission — from a toddler — is in stark distinction to the District’s disregard for and denial of the bullying going down at its colleges.”

The submitting additionally accuses one other alleged bully for taking photographs of Sammy in his open casket at his funeral. The go well with claims this scholar “was thereafter seen laughing whereas [their] cellphone, in a blood-curdling second harking back to the film Youngsters of the Corn.” 

This scholar, alleges the docs, “was no unusual bully” and was “clearly disturbed, if not inhuman” — earlier than the go well with claims the varsity district “did nothing” after being “repeatedly knowledgeable” of the coed’s alleged conduct.

Along with wrongful dying, Sammy’s mother and father accuse the plaintiffs of negligent care and supervision, whereas requesting a jury trial.

When reached for remark after the submitting by WRTV, the Greenfield-Central Neighborhood College Company reportedly referred the outlet to an earlier assertion.

“The loss of a kid to suicide is deflating to any neighborhood, and Greenfield was clearly in shock for a number of weeks as we closed final faculty 12 months. Members of the varsity company and the bigger neighborhood grieved with the Teusch household, and we are going to proceed to increase them help and style within the aftermath of the occasion,” they stated beforehand.

“Since that horrible day (Could fifth), we have now reviewed our data with nice scrutiny and interviewed many individuals near the scenario. To this present day, we have now discovered nothing to validate the allegation you referenced,” they added. “We imagine an goal overview of the data would attain the identical conclusion. In Greenfield-Central we do need to make sure that we’re doing all we are able to do to help our college students, whatever the wants they’ve once they stroll by means of our doorways. We are going to all the time keep that dedication to our college students and households.”

An investigation by Greenfield, Indiana police beforehand confirmed that “there was some bullying going down” in Sammy’s life earlier than the kid’s “traumatic” dying, in response to a information launch issued by Police Chief Brian Hartman.

Per the investigation, the Hancock County coroner dominated Sammy died from “asphyxiation by strangulation,” Hartman stated. He additionally famous that “there shall be no felony fees filed with the Hancock County Prosecutor.”