SHAWNEE, Kan. — An 11-year-old Kansas City, Kansas girl is recovering at home after being brutally attacked Friday night.
The girl’s name is Nevaeh Thomas. Her family says she was brutally attacked Friday evening while playing with her friends near an apartment complex in Shawnee. The girl’s mother believes this was racially motivated because of what a boy said leading up to the attack.
“Her feelings are more hurt because of the act of, the racial act. Not so much of the scaring,” Thomas’ mother, Brandi Stewart said.
A Friday evening play date in Shawnee, quickly turned violent for Neveah Thomas.
Niveah’s mother says a boy, she believes is a couple of years older than her daughter, walked up to her while played and called her racial slurs.
“She suffered from a concussion. She has stitches inside and outside of her cheek. She lost her tooth,” Stewart said.
Now many in this community wants charges for the boy who allegedly attacked Neveah.
“Hate speech has become the norm. Violence has become the norm. It’s seeped into our children,” Empowerment Temple pastor, Terry Bradshaw said.
Police did not confirm whether a child attacked Neveah. A police incident report shows she was hit with a blunt object.
“How about showing a little empathy. Regardless of the race of these kids, as a parent, if my child was injured in this manor, I’m not sure how I would handle this,” family attorney, LaRhonna Lassiter Saunder said.
The Johnson County District Attorney, Stephen Howe says the boy will be charged with aggravated battery, which is a felony.