Bailey O’Neill, a 12-Year-Old Bullied Boy Dies after Brutal Attack [PHOTOS]
Family and friends are currently mourning with the death of 12-year-old Bailey O'Neill after suffering a brutal attack from his two classmates. What makes this story heartbreaking is that Bailey celebrated his 12th birthday on Saturday then his life support was taken off on Sunday morning.
Rob O'Neill, Bailey's father, revealed that his son was involved in a fight in January at the Darby Township School in Upper Darby, west of Philadelphia. The bullied boy was knocked down during the fight which resulted to a concussion after receiving repeated hits on the face that also caused a fractured nose.
After the brutal attack, Bailey's personality had a drastic change. "From then on, something with Bailey wasn't right. He was sleeping. He was moody. He wasn't himself. He was angry a little bit. He wasn't really eating," Bailey's father shared.
Bailey's condition started to get worse after suffering the injuries from the attack. The young boy was hospitalized in Wilmington, Delaware after showing the symptoms of vomiting and seizures. Bailey developed pneumonia as well and a blood transfusion is needed.
According to a family friend, Bailey suffered refractory status epilepsies where the brain is in a condition of having persistent seizures. The doctors at the A.I. DuPont Hospital for Children hoped that putting Bailey in a medically induced coma would stop the seizures but the symptoms still continued.
Bailey's death due to the bully attack immediately spread on the internet where thousands of people hit the like button on the Facebook page "Prayers for Bailey O'Neill." Ray Rice, the Baltimore Ravens star, even expressed his dismay on the bullying incident that caused Bailey his precious life.
On his Facebook page, Ray Rice posted: "After learning last Thursday that doctors said Bailey had no longer had any brain activity, I reached out to the family and was able to spend about 45 minutes on the phone with them. I could hear their sadness, worry, frustration and grief. They would be faced with removing their son, cousin, nephew and best friend from life support."
He further added: "I don't think I will ever be able to understand why kids bully each other and how we are all sitting here after yet another 'bully death' getting ready to go through this difficult task of picking up the pieces and the even more difficult task of forgiving so we can heal."
Meanwhile, the Delaware County District Attorney's Office confirmed that they have initiated an active criminal investigation. Southeast Delco School District officials offered help with the investigation.
It is still undetermined what action will be further given to the two boys who brutally attacked Bailey after only receiving suspension for two days. "I would like to see these kids punished. Something has to be done. I don't know what's taking them so long," Joy Fecanin, Bailey's grandmother, stated.
