3 assaults involving Chromebooks at Boston Public Schools reported to police
BOSTON - Parents have reported incidents of their children being assaulted by other students wielding Chromebook laptop computers at Boston Public Schools three times in the last month, police reports show.
On April 28, a mother of a student at the Murphy K-8 School in Dorchester told police that her daughter was "resting her head on her desk when she was hit with something and blood was showing." According to a police report, the girl was hit in the head with a Chromebook and required five stitches at the hospital.
On May 2, an eighth grader at the Kilmer K-8 School in West Roxbury told police about an incident in science class with a former friend that turned violent and left her hospitalized.
"The suspect took her Chromebook with both hands and hit the victim on the top of her head more than six times," the police report stated, while also noting the parents of the victim declined to press charges.
And on May 3, police responded to Boston Latin Academy in Roxbury, where parents reported that their son "was intentionally hit over his head with a Chromebook laptop" over a dispute involving a classroom seat.
The officer in that case noted he was "unable to input suspect information because of restrictions prohibiting BPS to share information with BPD."
Student confidentiality laws restrict how much information schools can share with police, unless there's an urgent health or safety emergency.
"The safety of our students and staff is our highest priority. BPS policy requires police to be notified whenever there is an imminent risk to the health and safety of staff and/or students," Boston Public Schools said in a statement. "All incidents involving student safety require BPS staff to notify parents and/or guardians. In addition, BPS staff work with students and families to create individual safety plans to ensure that our students and staff experience a safe environment."
