Nashua Father Says Daughter Bullied At Fairgrounds Middle School

NASHUA, NH – A Nashua father is calling for a public discussion of bullying in schools and action from school officials after posting a video on social media of his 12-year-old daughter being attacked at Fairgrounds Middle School. Chad LaCrosse said that his daughter was attacked twice by other girls at the school and that meetings with school officials have been unsuccessful in keeping her safe.

"I plan on taking this as far I can," LaCrosse told Patch in a phone interview Tuesday night. "I was blown away with how the school system dealt with it. They told me they have their protocols and that it was a fight. That's not a fight. That was a planned attack."

LaCrosse said the video posted was of a Sept. 27 attack and that his daughter was attacked in the same manner on Monday, getting beat down while she was looking the other way. LaCrosse also asserts that his daughter was threatened on Sept. 26, received more threats on Sept. 28, and had to be dismissed from school due to threats on Oct. 4 before being attacked a second time on Monday.

He said other students witnessed the attacks and posted the videos of Snapchat, Instagram and TikTok. He said he went public after the second attack — which he said occurred when his daughter got off the bus at the school Monday morning — because he felt having the videos go viral would be the only way to increase awareness of the incident. As of Wednesday afternoon, the post of the video had received 55,000 views and 192 comments.

LaCrosse said he brought cause for a restraining order against two of the girls accused in the assault in Nashua District Court on Wednesday. He said a family pediatrician told him his daughter had signs of a concussion and cracked rib after the second attack. LaCrosse added that his daughter's friend had also been threatened.

"I want it to stop," he said. "I was told they can't arrest a 12-year-old for that. What exactly does a 12-year-old have to do to get arrested? That was a planned attack. I can understand if two kids go out in the playground and have a fistfight — that's a fight. If you are hit from behind when you are not looking, that's a planned attack. There is nothing you can do about it?"

LaCrosse posted on Facebook that he had meetings with Nashua Principal Sharon Coffey, Vice Principal Jeffrey Arbogast and Nashua Police, but claimed on social media: "They all said there is nothing they can do to make this stop, and she needs to fight back, or maybe she should change schools."

"My daughter is a straight-A student and she is the one who should change schools?" he told Patch was his reaction.

Nashua Superintendent Jamahl Mosely issued a letter to parents saying: "As superintendent, and as a father of a middle schooler at Fairgrounds Middle School, I am deeply troubled by this event and we will investigate this fully."

LaCrosse said he has a meeting with Mosely scheduled for Wednesday that he was told may include other school officials.

"I want things to change," LaCrosse said. "I want things to change in Nashua. I want things to change in Nashua schools. I want things to change with Nashua Police, if necessary.

"How many other parents are in my shoes and they have no way out?" he added.

Mosely wrote that Nashua Police have been contacted for "support and guidance in this matter" and that anyone revealed to be involved with being involved with, or filming, the bullying "will have consequences."

As part of a national reporting project, Patch has been looking at society's roles and responsibilities in bullying and a child's unthinkable decision to end their own life in hopes we might offer solutions that save lives.

Do you have a story to tell? Are you concerned about how your local schools handle bullies and their victims?

Email us at bullies@patch.com and share your views in the comments.

Selected Stories From The Project

• Bullied To Death: When Kids Kill With Words
• New Jersey Man Remembers The Day He Stood Up To Racist Bully
• Why Bullying Is Killing Kids: National Stop Bullying Day
• Teen Bullied, Outed As Bisexual Takes His Life
• Boy, 13, Dies 9 Days After Moreno Valley Middle School Attack
• Community Mourns Diego, 13, Bullied Boy Who Died In Attack
• I Could Have Been Mallory Grossman
• Bullied Over Homemade T-Shirt, Kid Inspires University Of Tennessee Design
• Howell Teen Runs To Save Lives, Change Statistics On Suicide
• America's Shameful Truth About School Shooters And Bullying
• Cyberbullying Most Often Affects Girls; These Women Are Trying To Stop It
• Bullying Kids: Straighten Up, Or Your Parents May Have To Pay Up
• Teen Who Killed Himself Wasn't 'Worthless,' Family Tells Bullies
• Menace Of Bullies: Why This Woman Resigned Her 6-Figure Job
• Survivor Of Bullying And Suicide Writes Frankly About Both
• ‘I Will Be Your Friend’: First-Grader’s Shirt Fights Bullies
• Girl-To-Girl Bullying: Why It's Different, Difficult To Confront
• What Prompts Bullying In This Ohio School
• Cyberbullying In This Michigan City Carries $500 Fine, 3 Months In Jail
• Bully Upstander: Whatever He Said Caused Bullies To Back Down
• Bullying Caused 11-Year-Old To Attempt Suicide, Mother Says
• Bullied 10-Year-Old's Suicide 8th In School District This Year
• The Menace Of Bullies: Most U.S. States Take On Cyberbullying
• Cyberbullying Is Now Against The Law In Michigan
• Shooting Incident Linked To Bullying At School, Mom Says
• Girls More Likely Than Boys To See Bullying As Harmful: Study
• 13-Year-Old Hangs Herself, But Bullying Killed Her
• Teen Tells Bullies In Video: 'Every Day, I Wear Your Words'
• 'The Hero Myth': Why Expecting Kids To Fight Bullies Is Harmful
• 'Mr. Anti-Bully': Reformed Bully, 12, Sets Mistake Right
• Mallory Grossman Bullying Detailed In Wrongful Death Suit
• Malden Schools Were Non-Compliant Through Bullying Saga: DOE
• 'They All Failed And Changed A Child': Malden Bullying Detailed
• Mom Speaks About Bullying Heartbreak: 'I Feel I Failed Him'
• Why These Kindergartners Start Each Day With A Handshake
• The Bully Menace: 'The Hurt Never Goes Away'
• Bullies And Their Targets The Same: Digital Self-Harm Rising
• Williamsburg Poetry Teacher Helps Bullied Kids Open Tortured Minds
• Bullying Tougher To Confront When It's Bias-Based: Researchers
• The Bully Menace: 13 Age-Appropriate Reads
• Teen's 'I Wear Your Words' Video Inspires Nashville Songwriters

From No Bully, Patch News Partner

• 5 Things Students Can Do To Prevent Bullying
• School Shootings: Eradicating Bullying Must Be Part Of Safety Plan
• Eradicating Bullying: Progress On Creating Bully-Free Environment
• Is Screen Time Hurting My Child?
• Preschool Children: Online And Dangerous
• What Every Young Child Needs To Know About Being Online
• Patch Partners With No Bully To Help Eradicate Bullying
• Meet 14-Year-Old CEO On Mission To Spread Kindness, Stop Bullying
• Meet Talen And Cooper, 2 Upstanders Demonstrating Kindness
• Cyberbullying Is Now A Crime In Michigan: Is Criminalizing A Good Idea?
• Hitting A Homerun With Kindness With The Phillies

From The Experts

• 'The Anti-Bully': Talk And, Especially, Listen To Your Kids
• The Bully Menace: Patch Experts Offer Tips To Parents
• Anti-Bully Experts Offer Tips On Sometimes Deadly Encounters
• Understanding The Bully: They're Often Victims, Too, Experts Say

What We've Learned

• 10 Key Takeaways From Patch’s The Menace Of Bullies Series
• The Bully Menace: What Patch Has Learned About Bullying