After a months-long investigation, police have charged three teenagers for alleged involvement in the brutal beating of a trans classmate.
A release from the Gloucester, Massachusetts, Police Department stated that it has filed criminal complaints “seeking assault and battery charges against three juvenile males.” The charges stem from a violent altercation that took place over Labor Day weekend and left trans 16-year-old Jayden Tkaczyk with bone fractures and nerve damage.
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“One second, I was having fun. The next minute, I was on the ground getting my face stomped and beat,” said Tkaczyk after his release from the hospital. Tkaczyk told reporters he’s dealt with being bullied for years over his trans identity and is sure it played a part in why he was targeted.
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But the recent report from the police department stated there would be no hate crime charges.
“Due to allegations that this may have been a hate crime, Gloucester Police assigned a specially trained hate crime investigator to the case, and also consulted with Essex DA’s Office and a specially trained State Police detective who investigates hate crimes as part of the Governor’s Hate Crimes Awareness and Response Team,” it explained. “Evidence gathered as part of the investigation did not ultimately support hate crime charges.”
Chief Edward Conley said in a statement that the department “conducted a meticulous, thorough, and compassionate investigation, and the resulting charges are consistent with the evidence.”
Tkaczyk was reported missing before police responded to the area around 10:45 p.m. Officers say they learned that there had been a “dispute” among teens at the gathering and that one had been assaulted. Authorities said the people involved “are known to one another.”
Adding to the family’s distress: social media posts justifying the attack.
“This has always been my worst fear as a mom of a trans teen,” said Jasmine Tkaczyk, Jayden’s mother. “A lot of them are proud of what they did, and it’s wrong.”
She added, “He’s been bullied by these children for years.”
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