Aberdeen Middle School student allegedly inappropriately touching classmates at dance sparks protests

BALTIMORE - Parents and students are outraged after several students reported being sexually assaulted at a middle school Valentine's dance in Harford County last week.

School leaders said a 12-year-old student is accused of inappropriately touching some of his Aberdeen Middle School female classmates. The dance was ended early, school officials said.

Videos on TikTok show students protesting inside Aberdeen Middle School in the aftermath of the alleged assault.    

Relatives told WJZ that more than two dozen police officers responded to the school last Thursday.

"To pull up to a school to pick up a kid from a middle school dance, and you have at least 30 cops there -- I mean, with all the shootings and everything's that happened, you don't know what's going on," said Kayla Green, who picked up her niece that day.

As word about the sexual assault spread, students got upset and contacted their parents, which effectively ended the dance early.

Pictures from those living around the school showed the aftermath of the dance debacle: cars and police cruisers clogged the streets, and lots of people were running around.

The school said the student has been disciplined, but his classmates want to see more action taken against him.

"For them to be in middle school and have to protest women harassment, young girl harassment -- it's just very, very -- it's sad honestly," said Samiya Ashby, who has two siblings at the school.

WJZ asked Ashby if it was difficult to talk to her siblings about the incident.

"Yes, very difficult," she said. "I feel like I shouldn't have to have these conversations with my younger brother about not touching younger girls."

A woman who started an online protest said an online rally was shared with school leaders their concerns about this alleged incident.

The organizer told WJZ the protest was posted Monday afternoon, and more than 5,700 emails were already sent to school officials.

School officials told WJZ police are investigating and the student was disciplined, but the district said it can't say what the discipline was.

However, the student cannot be criminally charged because of a Maryland law that prevents charges from being filed against children under 13 years old.

Students staged protests inside the school and posted videos on TikTok saying they are concerned for their safety and that more action needs to be taken against the student.

"What was so inspiring was that these middle schoolers took it upon themselves to protest," Laura Loray, a TikTok advocate, told WJZ.

Loray, a psychiatric nurse practitioner from New Jersey, saw the videos and started the online protest on behalf of the students. 

It allows people to email school administrators directly to voice their concerns.

"That's another reason why I felt like I needed to get involved as well," Laura Loray told WJZ. "Because if it's not happening here in this middle school, it's happening in another one, and it's happening somewhere else. So those students need to feel heard. So, they feel that they could report things."

A district spokesperson told WJZ that three letters were sent to parents informing them of this incident.

She said the district takes this matter seriously and that there was additional security at the school on Monday.

School officials sent these letters to parents and guardians:

Thursday, 2/9/2023, following the dance:

"This afternoon, we had to end our school dance 20 minutes early. A student was inappropriately touching other students. This is a very serious situation and we have contacted the Aberdeen Police Department to assist us in a thorough investigation. If your child did not share with administrators but informs you that they were inappropriately touched at the dance, please contact me or the Aberdeen Police immediately to report it."

"As you know, this is unacceptable and a violation of school rules and HCPS policy, and appropriate disciplinary action has been taken.  The safety of our students is our priority, and we are sorry to those who were respectfully participating in the event, that it had to be cut short. Students were able to collect their belongings and meet their parents and guardians at the normal dismissal time. Again, the school dance ended 20 minutes early to ensure the safety of our students and allow law enforcement and administrators to conduct a thorough investigation."

Friday, 2/10/2023:

"Aberdeen Middle is currently placed on a modified lockdown as a result of students congregating and disrupting the instructional day. We believe the students were congregating in response to the events that occurred last night at the dance. The students involved this morning did return to their classrooms and we will continue our modified lockdown for the duration of the day, as a safety precaution. Our SRO and staff from the HCPS Safety and Security Office are present in the building today as the safety of our students and staff remain our top priority."

Sunday, 2/12/2023:

"As we are sure you are aware, the incident that occurred at the dance continued to cause disruptions to our school on Friday. While we shared with you on Thursday night that disciplinary action was taken, it appears that rumors are being spread that individuals were not disciplined and were allowed to return to school. This is inaccurate. We took this situation very seriously, involved the Aberdeen Police Department, and while we cannot discuss specific disciplinary action, I want to repeat that the rumors that individuals were not disciplined and were allowed to return to school, are not true. 

"Second, we are aware that there are conversations on social media encouraging students to disrupt the school day on Monday. Our goal is to provide a safe and secure environment for all our students to learn. As such, if a student chooses to disrupt the school day, they may face disciplinary action. We are asking for the help and support of our parents and guardians to ensure students come to school prepared for the instructional day. We know that there are also social media threads that are encouraging students to bring weapons to school. Please take this opportunity to talk with your student and remind them that weapons of any kind – replica or real – are not allowed in school. It is a violation of school rules and HCPS policy, and appropriate disciplinary action will be taken. There will be an additional police presence, as well as additional staff from HCPS Safety and Security, on campus on Monday."