North Texas City Outlaws Bullying
CRANDALL, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) - It's a problem that has infected schools and led to suicides.
Now the Kaufman County city of Crandall is believed to be the first in Texas to outlaw bullying.
City leaders tell CBS 11 they have not found another municipality in Texas that's taken this step.
The state has an anti-bullying law that sets up a process for reporting it.
But in Crandall, it's now a Class C misdemeanor.
The Crandall City Council took the historic step Monday night when it approved the proposal unanimously.
It makes bullying a crime punishable by a fine in this city of 5,000 residents.
Mayor Danny Kirbie wants to send a message that bullying is a criminal offense and taken seriously here.
"All people of growing up through any era of time has been bullied somewhere, in sometime, we know somebody that has been," said Mayor Kirbie. "I think we as Crandall, we're going to take a step to try to move forward to how can we fix it."
Mayor Kirbie said he is meeting this week with Crandall ISD to see how the ordinance can help stop bullying on its campuses.