12-year-old beat up by bully caught on camera, his mother asks for bullying to stop in Waukesha School District

WAUKESHA, Wis. (CBS 58) -- A mother from Waukesha is demanding that bullying stops in the Waukesha School District after her special needs son was attacked at a park by a bully on May 15.

Gabriel McBride, who is 12 years old, said he had been bullied ever since he joined the Waukesha School District; he attended Les Paul Middle School. He said the bullying got so bad he had to leave the middle school. The latest attack was caught on camera.

"For them to bully me and not have anything else to do is really messed up," said McBride.

The video shows a young boy walking up to McBride and punching him then throwing him on the ground. Kathie McBride said the attack put Gabriel in the hospital. Gabriel said that the attacker was a part of the friend group that bullied him. While he was there, he was invited to a Snapchat group where the video was shared. His mother recorded that video on her phone.

"I mean it's out of control. It's not escalating, it is out of control," said Kathie McBride.

McBride said the bullying started back in October when the 12-year-old was hit with an IPad. She said things escalated after her son and a peer were goofing around. On March 29, McBride said her son was sexually assaulted.

"He was sitting at a lunch table just how we are right now and a boy reaches over and grabs his crotch... and announces to the whole lunch room 'Gabriel has a little,'" said McBride.

According to the Waukesha School District, they've reported 93 incidents of bullying in the 2021-22 school year. That number was 88 in the 2020-21 school year.

The Deputy Superintendent of the Waukesha School District, Joe Koch, said the district has a zero tolerance rule on bullying. He said each case is investigated and the consequences are dependent on the severity. It ranges from in-school detention to expulsion from their system. Koch also said the bullies are helped to recognize the impact of their behavior.

McBride said she thinks this isn't enough to help the problem.

"The board of education needs to put juvenile criminal law juvenile criminal offences as part of their curriculum," said McBride.

She believes that a rehabilitation center for troubled kids should be available where children from the ages of 10 to high school graduation are taught about juvenile criminal law. She also said she thinks the parents have a huge responsibility with helping to curb the issue of bullying.

"If you are teaching your kids to be bullies at home, stop," said McBride.

The Waukesha Police Department said a person was arrested for the bullying incident that occurred on March 29 as well as May 15. They said the police department gets involved when a crime is committed.

"If a crime has occurred it has to be investigated and we will investigate it. If we can get compliance that’s the best thing because we do not want to introduce the kid to the criminal justice system," said Chief Dan Baumann.

Joe Koch of the Waukesha School District said, "We want all of our students to feel safe and supported by the school."

Koch added that he encourages parents to reach out to the district administration with any concerns if they feel like their needs have not been met by the school level.