Well I would certainly hope these boys will get more than a slap on the wrist. This is carrying pranks and games WAY too far.
A Grade 6 Grande Prairie boy is in pretty rough shape after a run in with some bigger boys from his neighborhood and it's all thanks to the latest trend - knock down. Knock down, or knock out, the idea behind the "game," which is receiving lots of attention south of the border, basically involves a group of assailants attacking an unknown stranger. The goal is to knock the person to ground and/or to render them unconscious. Often the attacks are filmed and then posted on Facebook and the like as a means to brag. People have died because of incidents like this.
And I thought King of the Mountain and Dodgeball were rough back in the day!
So enter into the picture a young Thomas Steidel, an unsuspecting Grade six boy who was playing in the park next to his school with his buddy. It no doubt was a typical afternoon until a group five boys (ages 13 to 16) showed up and made Thomas their punching bag. The younger boys tried to run away but with no luck. Thomas's friend was caught and beaten and when Thomas tried to help, he was attacked as well. One of the attackers filmed it all as it unfolded. How sick can a person be?
I'm guessing the friend must not be feeling the best, I haven't heard, but for Thomas, the event could be life altering.
"He got about 10 blows to the face, and at least a couple were in the same spot on his jaw and so his jaw is fractured," details his grandmother. "The whole shape of his face has changed, because it was dislodged. It's disgusting." Thomas now needs extensive surgery that will require the attachment of titanium plates and the breaking of his jaw. He is in dire pain and who knows if his face will ever look the same. He's young and hopefully he will heal.
RCMP are looking into the matter. So far nobody has seen the video posted online. Eventually it WILL surface. Obviously common sense and brains don't prevail in the minds of these teens. They will want to brag and when they do I certainly hope someone reports them and that this matter is taken very seriously.
There are enough bad things happening in the world, we don't need this catching on and becoming popular in Canada. For everyone's sake, let's come down on these boys hard and set a precedence. Acts like this WILL NOT be tolerated.
