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Franklin, Kentucky – Outraged parents are demanding justice after their teenage daughter was nearly beaten to death with a steel mug on Monday. The attack—which was said to have taken place on a school bus—resulted in the young girl having to walk the rest of the way home with blood streaming down her face.

According to early reports, the incident began on Thursday, when two students attending Franklin-Simpson High School were riding the school bus home. That’s when the parents of 14-year-old Emma Filback say their daughter was attacked with “no provocation” by another student.

Filback—who is diagnosed with Autism—was said to have been beaten severely over the head with a metal tumbler, creating a head wound that would later require stitches. They then go on to allege that the two hadn’t spoken to each other on the bus prior to the incident.

Alarming photos of the young girl had been uploaded to social media by her parents, hoping to sound the alarm against not just the suspect but the school for failing to address the situation. In them, young Emma’s face can be seen covered in blood. A separate photo purportedly shows a series of stitches running down the length of her scalp.

“My autistic daughter was sitting on the bus on her phone to message me, (when) a girl came up behind her and started beating her with a metal tumbler,” read a post by the victim’s mother on Facebook. “Then the bus driver made my daughter get off the bus and walk home in the condition she was in.”

“Emma was gonna pass out so luckily a neighbor grabbed her for me. When my daughter came up to me looking the way she did. We took her straight to hospital,” it continued.

Since the attack unfolded, the parents of young Emma allege that the school and local courts have failed to adequately address the issue. Law enforcement tied to the incident said they had planned to charge the suspect with assault in the 4th degree, but to some, the response appeared to be a slap on the wrist.

“The school officer said they were gonna charge her with assault 4th degree, to me that’s not enough,” read a post by Emma’s parents. “It should be attempted murder. Today we tried getting an (Emergency Protective Order) but the judge denied it.”

“We went to the county attorney and he said he couldn’t do anything..We had to get child designated worker to send it to him…She said it was between the school officer and the county attorney. So this is where we at,” it continued.

In Kentucky, sentencing guidelines for a charge of assault in the 4th degree are punishable by a maximum fine of only $500 and up to 12 months incarceration. If a court determines the assault was committed during an “extreme emotional disturbance,” that sentence could be lowered to a fine of $250 and not more than 90 days behind bars.

Even so, the case may be difficult to prove. According to Filback’s parents, the camera system that is supposed to monitor the inside of the bus was not operating at the time of the attack. The alleged suspect—a 16-year-old female student who some say may have bullied Emma in the past—appeared to be bragging about the attack on social media, however.

A screenshot purporting to show a heavily damaged metal tumbler with the caption “I beat her with this,” was said to have come from the suspect’s social media profile. The Justice Report could not immediately verify the account or identify the alleged suspect, but new details will be provided as they become available.

In the meantime, a GoFundMe has been set up to help support the Filback family, as they plan to sue the school district for its alleged mishandling of events. According to GreatSchools, the demographics of Franklin Simpson High School are currently 77% White, with 60% of all students coming from a low-income family.

A statement released by the Simpson County School District alleged that a monitor on the bus had broken up the fight and that law enforcement had been called. On social media, Emma’s parents appeared to refute the notion and say that school administrators have yet to speak to them or their daughter.

“With my daughter being autistic, how is this not a hate crime?” Asked Chryslee Filback in a post on Facebook. “The person knew they could kill her and still kept beating into her skull. Everytime I close my eyes all I can see is my babygirl covered in blood.”

“I will not stop advocating for my child, I will not stop,” she continued in another.

In the United States, public schools across the nation continue to be plagued by horrific acts of violence, criminality, and even death, forcing some parents to find alternatives to keep their children safe.

In March, the issue gained national attention after a 16-year-old White girl was brutalized on film outside of a High School by what appeared to be a Black victimizer. The vicious assault resulted in the young girl, identified as Kaylee Gain from St. Louis, Missouri, suffering a brain bleed which, to this day, continues to threaten her life.

In November, 17-year-old Jonathan Lewis of Las Vegas, Nevada, was beaten to death on camera, by what appeared to be a gang of non-White students in an alleyway near their school. The incident quickly went viral on social media and sparked outrage after local police dismissed the possibility of hate crimes before arrests had even been made.

The death of Jonathan Lewis has since been considered an anti-White “lynching,” though his father has come out to dismiss any such racial narratives.

Correction: A previous version of the article stated that the weapon used was a Stanley mug. Sources close to the incident have confirmed it was a metal tumbler of a different brand. The article has been updated to include this new information.

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