Boston first-grader investigated for sexual harassment after punching classmate in groin

Boston first-grader investigated for sexual harassment after punching classmate in groin
Mother outraged, says son was acting in self-defense

BY Cynthia Ghazali
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Friday, December 2 2011, 2:57 PM


Mark Curran, 7, was bullied by a former friend before school, so he punched him in the groin and now is being accused of sexual assault. His mother is Tasha Lynch.

A 7-year-old Boston boy is under investigation for sexual harassment after punching a fellow student in the groin.

The extreme measure against the first-grader, Mark Curran, has his mother outraged.

Tasha Lynch claims her son struck the boy in self-defense after his gloves were stolen and says the probe is a below-the-belt blow by the school. Lynch also claims the other boy choked her son.

“I think my kid was right to fight back,” Lynch told The Boston Globe. Lynch said if her son is under suspicion of sexual harassment, the other boy in the fight should be investigated for attempted murder. “The kid choked my son first and that’s called attempted murder. He said he couldn’t breathe,” she said.

Public schools officials declined to comment, but a spokesperson told The Globe that “any kind of inappropriate touching would fall under that [sexual harassment] category.”

Lynch said officials questioned her son and pressured him into saying he started the fight.

“They didn’t believe me,” Mark told The Globe. “I didn’t get my gloves back.”

In a letter from Tynan Elementary School interim principal, Lynch said her son could be suspended or transferred to a new school.

A hearing on the incident is scheduled for next week.

AtownPeep wrote:I wanna laugh. I'm sorry but what a dumb, paranoid, uptight, overly PC society this has become.

CeCe wrote:

It's just ridiculously funny & ridiculously disturbing at the same time. It's reaching a point where a kid won't be able to hug another one without be labeled a sexual predator these days. They won't be able to have a scuffle without being handcuffed. They're kids. If the teachers can't deal with kids being kids maybe they should work the cosmetics counter at JC Penny. These things can be handled without cops & courts. Honestly it's not that serious.