A 14-year-old boy was assaulted at his high school Friday by four older teens following a confrontation with a parent who used a vicious racial slur.
The victim, identified as freshman Dasanni Barfield, is now recovering from a broken nose and a concussion.
His mother, Cherie Barfield, is now calling on the Bay Area school to keep its students safe on campus.
The boy said he was standing outside the locker room when the Dublin High School parent, reportedly the mother of a student, confronted him.
After allegedly being called the n-word, the black student retreated into the boys’ locker room, before being followed by the parent and four unknown subjects who were approximately 16 to 19 years of age, police said.
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The victim, identified as freshman Dasanni Barfield, is recovering from a broken nose and a concussion after allegedly being assaulted at his high school Friday by four older teens after a confrontation with a parent.
The boy said he was standing outside the locker room when the Dublin High School parent, reportedly the mother of a student, confronted him. After allegedly being called the n-word, the black student retreated into the boys’ locker room
‘So while I’m outside, the mother says which one of you…she calls…’ Barfield, who is a member of the school’s football team, told CBS News Bay Area Tuesday in an interview while seated alongside his mother.
‘”N***ers.” Say what she said,’ mom Cherie stated.
‘She called us that,’ Barfield agreed. ‘She asked like that, with that word.’
‘That’s how the mother approached him.” added his mother, claiming her son was still shaken by the encounter.
She also said he was uncomfortable relaying the racist things the as-of-now unnamed mother supposedly said.
‘It’s on the surveillance film,’ she insisted.
Neither the school nor the police department would release further details on the nature of the assault, not identifying the victim.
He identified himself in the interview Tuesday, after Dublin police confirmed their belief the assault was not random.
Seen here with his mother Cherie Tuesday, the youngster was followed by the parent and four unknown subjects who were approximately 16 to 19 years of age into the locker room where he was mercilessly beaten, police said
‘When she says that, all I do is walk away,’ Barfield recalled of the encounter that led to the beatdown. ‘I wasn’t going to try to argue with her.’
It was at that point that Desanni said saw four bigger figures emerge from behind , before beginning to approach him.
He retreated to the locker room in response, he said – before detailing the beatdown that allegedly ensued.
‘These guys come into the locker room and ask, “Are you Dasanni? Are you Dasanni?” the boy said, still visibly stressed.
‘One of the dudes sucker punches me. I stand up, I start fighting back and they all start jumping me,’ he said.
His mother, now demanding answers, added how she was ‘hurting for [her son] because [she doen’t] know how it’s going to affect him’ further down the line.
‘The trauma that ensued,’ she said.
She wants an explanation from administrators, after a Dublin High parent was confirmed to have been involved in the attack
She added how she was especially concerned that a Dublin High parent was involved in the attack – a fact that police, despite not naming anyone involved, have already confirmed.
‘I just can’t fathom how another parent can just bring bodily harm against another child. And just get away with it,’ the mother lamented.
‘I just want my son to be safe. I want all kids to be safe in this community,’ she said. ‘We live here. We started a restaurant here to bring this community together.’
She added how it was one of her son’s teammates who rushed in to stop the attack, as well as several other horrified onlookers.
In a letter to families, school principal Maureen Byrne said she and school officials ‘are outraged that this happened on our campus.
‘School must be a place where all feel safe and supportive,’ she said.
The four teens involved were not named, but ranged in age from 16 to 19, police said. It was not immediately clear if they were students.
The lead-up to the assault and its aftermath were captured on video, Byrne added, as cops said all four of the younger suspects had been wearing ski masks.
Police did say they have identified some of the people involved, including the parent.
Police and paramedics responded to the scene after the school’s football coach, former Oakland Raiders player Napoleon Kaufman, jumped in to help the boy as well.
Police and paramedics responded to the scene after the school’s football coach, former Oakland Raiders player Napoleon Kaufman, jumped in to help the boy as well, officials said. An investigation is underway
Dublin police Chief Nate Schmidt said his department had yet to make any arrests and that officers are still interviewing witnesses.
Dublin Police added that evidence was being compile to determine a motive for the attack, and how the victim, suspects, and Dublin High School parent all knew each other.
In the meantime, Barfield is poised to miss his first football game as a freshman.
“Football has been his everything since he was seven,’ his mom said, as cops continue to look into what exactly happend
‘And for him not to be able to play in his starting game…I just wish I could ease everything for him, but I can’t.’
She wants an explanation from administrators, she said.
Cops’ investigation into the incident remains ongoing.