SAN DIEGO (NEWS 8) - Zulema Guzman said that her son, German , was a happy kid who always smiled and made jokes before the bullying started in ninth grade.
6 months ago German committed suicide in the family's Logan Heights home. His mom says the bullying got so bad at King Chavez Community High School, that he was taken out of class multiple times crying. German was even seeing the school's psychologist.
The family’s attorney, Michael Carillo, files a lawsuit against the school and against San Diego Unified School District. In the suit the family is alleging negligence and wrongful death.
Carrillo says the school knew the bullying was going on, but did nothing to stop it.
King Chavez Community High School sent News 8 this statement,
We strongly disagree with the statements made in this court filing. However, due to privacy concerns and out of respect for the family, we are unable to discuss the matter or provide additional details at this time.
German's mother is also upset because the day before his suicide, the school called police to deal with an issue involving her son, but they neglected to tell her.
It's not clear what happened but under state law, children over 12 can request that outpatient mental health treatment information not be shared with parents.
German's family says the lawsuit isn’t about money, but more about getting answers as to why the school handled her son's bullying the way they did.