Boy bullied in Gig Harbor as teacher watches

BY Chris Sullivan  on August 29, 2012 @ 5:20 am (Updated: 8:32 am - 8/30/12 )

The parents of a Gig Harbor boy have asked for a criminal investigation after their son was terrorized in a bullying attack in his classroom at Kopachuck Middle School.

The incident happened in February and was captured on video. The then-eighth grade boy was held down and put under chairs while classmates drew on his feet and stuffed his socks in his mouth, all while the teacher was watching.

The teacher, John Rosi, even joined in by poking the boy in the stomach.

The school district said when they learned of the incident, they immediately put the teacher on administrative leave.

Officials watched the video in its entirety, and talked to students in the classroom, the victim and his parents to understand the full scope of the story.

"The teacher lost control of his classroom," said Peninsula School District Acting Superintendent Charles Cuzzetto.

In school records obtained by The News Tribune, Rosi said he considered the actions normal horseplay and kids blowing off steam.

Rosi was reportedly suspended for 10 days and shipped to another school, but he did not lose his job.

The boy's parents say that's not good enough, and have asked police to look into the case.

The Pierce County sheriff's office is now investigating.

Chris Sullivan, KIRO Radio Reporter
Chris loves the rush of covering breaking news and works hard to try to make sense of it all while telling stories about real people in extraordinary circumstances.
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Comments (46)


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  • Loving Life wrote...
    And you wonder why the suicide rate amongst students and young adults, in Gig Harbor, is so high.
    August 29, 2012 4:13 pm
    The parents, the teachers, and the elitist, have made some very self indulgent kids. Bullies in Gig Harbor? Absolutely. The young people are dying and no one seems to see it, or care. Apparently there has been a significantly high death rate by suicide the past 10 years. Gig Harbor: Trying to be Mercer Island but actually Tacoma West.
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  • Loving Life wrote...
    The video is shocking. This is a classroom, with a teacher, and a student is getting assaulted! This may cost the Gig Harbor School system Millions of dollars.
    August 29, 2012 4:23 pm
    Wow. This is Assault and Battery, Kidnapping, being held against his will, physically abused. This is a terrorist act. This child will have PTSD and it will cost the Gig Harbor school district millions of dollars. Bullied is the least of the criminal acts.
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  • cg5611 wrote...
    the teacher lost control of his classroom?
    August 29, 2012 5:02 pm
    wow, that's quiet a euphemism. We don't know all the facts but I do know sometimes people don't fight. Like the deer in the headlights. The real problem is this teacher. He should be fired. Since he was not I really hope he is being very well monitored.
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  • soo purletiv wrote...
    The horrors of sensationalism
    August 29, 2012 5:08 pm
    And not just by the media....

    I saw the clip, read the articles including the teachers explanation as well as the suspension notice.

    The teacher willingly accepted the suspension in lieu of termination.

    Sure, maybe he let things go on for too long. He should have stepped in and had the class in order sooner then he did. He was suspended for 10 days without pay and reassigned to a different school of the Districts choice.

    If I didn't know the back story I would be pretty incensed, especially after reading the title of the articles. :-{

    The kid was not being bullied. He was playing right along with the others. The only time he was being boisterous is when his feet were being tickled. I have very sensitive feet. I react the same way even today when anyone so much as touches my feet.

    He was not being held against his will. Had he put up any ounce of struggle the rest of the class would have been watching more intently and I am convinced that the teacher would have at that time stepped in and stopped it.

    Yes, this is not proper behavior in a classroom setting. And the teacher was rightly disciplined. He accepted the discipline and served it. Getting the police involved is so overboard and ridiculous, to say the least. There are REAL incidents of bullying going on all the time. Focus on those. This is just a case where a teacher let some students blow off some steam at the wrong time.

    Unless we want robots teaching our kids (not literal robots, but teachers who act like robots), we need to quit trying to criminalise every action a teacher is involved in, in which we do not approve!

    And some wonder why we have so many unqualified and inadequate teachers today? The good ones find other employment......

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  • Oly80 wrote...
    soo...
    August 30, 2012 11:28 am
    well put.
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  • Moondoggie wrote...
    The WEA must be so proud!
    August 29, 2012 6:43 pm
    .
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  • Snout wrote...
    The fragile ego of the modern child and parent.
    August 29, 2012 8:18 pm
    Please. I was "bullied" by modern definition when I was a runt early in grade school. I haven't lashed out at others or gone postal as an adult. I did my share of "bullying" when I got bigger and haven't grown up to be Biff from "Back to the Future." It's a part of growing up. You learn from childhood antics. Coddling kids isn't the answer. If bullying becomes violent to the point that kids are actually hurt then it's an issue. But most cases don't end up like that. It's simply a dominance issue that all creatures go through while growing up. We aren't all the same and never will be. Deal with it, parents. Talk to your kids and don't blame or sue someone else.
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  • SurfCity12 wrote...
    Out of Control
    August 30, 2012 2:30 am
    It seemed like the boy was playing along and actually liked being "tortured" as seen on the shortened video clip. It went too far when his shoes and socks were taken off and the socks were put in his mouth. Tickling bare feet is fun, but they went overboard by drawing on them. The teacher should have intervened after about the first few minutes and stopped it! He shouldn't be fired, but suspended without pay for his actions!
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