claim that their two children, one with special needs, faced bullying at glenmount elementary and hazelwood elementary between 2008 and 2010. the parents allege that the children were assaulted and tormented, and school administrators did nothing to stop it. >> the school system never denied it. they denied the paperwork. they denied whether or not i should have written a letter. i truly thought it was ok just to tell somebody. >> regardless of how the jury decides, the sullivan family hopes to bring more attention to what they feel is a concern with the school district. >> i am glad that this issue is getting attention and that our children may be more safe as a result of it. >> on wednesday, the judge did toss out nine counts, leaving four for the jury to decide. they are discussing if two principals were negligent in the alleged bullying. the sullivan's lawyer would not predict if they could win, but is happy to see that their story is playing out. >> well, we hope to have a jury verdict in the sullivan's favor tomorrow. but regardless of how the jury comes down in this matter, there was

the parents say he was tormented by classmates at hazelwood elementary school and the school system didnothing about it. the couple says they went to the principal numerous times but the bullying wasn't stopped. the last straw they say was when their son was attacked outside of the school. the couple say he was choked until he passed out and they moved their son to glenmount which was also a problem. the bullying continued and they say they received no help from administrators. the parents hope this trial will send a message for school systems to put a stop to bullying. i had a chance to talk to the baltimore city schools spokesperson and she tells me that basically the school district does not comment on pending or active litigation. again, that trial starts at 9:30 this morning in courthouse east in room 528. reporting live in downtown baltimore, sherrie johnson, abc2 news. >>> a deadly fire near pittsburgh claims the life of a mother and three young children ages ranging 3 to 7. the victim's twin, the 3-year-old did get out of the home. firefighters attempted to rescue the family but

he's a special needs student and his parents say he was taunted by class mates at hazelwood elementary school and the school system did nothing about it. they said they went to the principal numerous times, the bullying wasn't stop stopped. they say the last straw was when his son was choked outside of the school until he passed out. they moved to glenmount which was also a problem. the bullying continued there and they say they received no help from administrators. the parents hope this trial will send a message for the school system to put a stop to bullying. i had a chance to contact the baltimore city school district and spoke to a spokesperson and they said basically the district does not comment on active or pending litigation. once again that trial starts at 9:30 this morning right here at courthouse east. reporting live in downtown baltimore, sherrie johnson, abc2 news. >>> one towson school is doing long distance learning. cromwell valley students are working with skype, part of an outreach program. the skype lesson takes place this afternoon. it will be at the kioa hawaii. th

his parents say he was tormented by classmates at hazelwood elementary school and the school system did nothing about it. the couple says they went to the principal numerous times but the bullying wasn't stopped. the last straw they said was when their son was attacked outside of the school, they said he was choked until he passed out and the couple then moved their son to glenmount which was also a problem. the bullying continued and they say they received no help from administrators. the parents hope this trial will send a message for school systems to put a stop to the bullying. i had a chance to talk to the folks with the baltimore city school system. a spokesperson told me the school district doesn't comment on active litigation. reporting live in downtown baltimore, sherrie johnson, abc2 news. >>> an army intelligence analyst will be in the military courtroom tomorrow at fort meade. a pretrial hearing scheduled for first class bradley manning, suspected of passing government secrets to wikileaks. the hearing is to determine whether he should be court-martialed. prosecutors say bra

sean is a special needs student and parents say he was tormented by classmates at hazelwood elementary school and that the school system did nothing about it. the couple says they went to the principal numerous times but the bullying wasn't stopped. the last straw they say was when their son was attacked outside of the school. they say he was chokedded until he passed out. the couple then moved their son to glenmount which was also a problem. the bullying continued and they say she received no help from administrators. the parents hope this trial will send a message for the school system to stop the bullying. i contacted baltimore city schools and a spokesperson told me that the district does not comment on active or pending litigation. once again that trial starts at 9. 30 this morning right here at courthouse east. reporting live in downtown baltimore, sherrie johnson, abc2 news. >>> right now police are searching for a suspect in connection with a shooting in east baltimore. this happened before 7:00 last night in a barber shop near the 2200 block of harvard road. police say the mal

board.the ullivan familyysays their children were buillied while the syytem gillilanddis live at hazelwoody school n northeast baltimore where the aaleged &pabuse began.3 who used to go to schooo here. they claim theekids were buulied so badly... thhy had to transfer them to another school.despite reporting the incidents....they say those in charre here... ddd nothing. nothing.eddy and shawna sullivan... who you see here... say it started when they moved here in 2008.they who suffers from a rain injury was being picked on. when their daughter colleen tried to stand up for her little rother... t back firedd 3 (54:34)she stood up for him 3 ann the next thing we know someone haddactually gone into her locker and urinated in her the time we would try to talkk -& to the ppincipal and we would ggt whaa can i help you wiih this time... time...now he suulivann have tens of thousands of ollars in edical biill for ongoing 3 inpatient care... prompting a laasuit againsttthe school disttict and the two principals. & we asked the schhol about it... they told uu ttey couldn't comment on pending or activ

while thh system did nothing.meggn illiland is live aa hazelwood elementary schhol in northeast baatimore where the alleged abuse began. bbgan.good mornnng patricehe sullivans have two chhldren who used to go to school here. ttey claim the kids were bullied so badly... thhy had &pschhol.despite repooting the -3 charge hhre... didn't try to help. help.eddyyand shawna sulllvan... who you see here... say it startedd hhn they moved here in 2008.they who sufffrs ffom a brain injury was being picked on. ptheir daughter colleen triid to stand up for her little brother... buu it back fired. shh started gettinn bullied poo... and sean continueddto come home with cuus and bruises. 3 (52:03)a group of kids 3 kidding and kicking him and one of them....one ccokeddhim till e passed out.....(57:52) he would come home ttere would be scratches on his face...busted ip he wws stabbed by one & student with a ssork in his leg. & leg.now the sullivans have tens of thhusands of dollars innmeddcal bills for ongoing counseeing and psychiatric inpatient care... proopting a lawsuit against the school district and t

. >> they claim their two children faced bullying at glenmount elementary and hazelwood elementary between 2008 and 2009. they say school administrators did nothing to stop it because they deny the paperwork. they deny whether or not they should have written a letter. >> i thought it was ok just to tell somebody. >> the family hopes to bring more attention to what they feel is a concern with the school district. >> i am glad that this issue is getting attention and that our children may be more safe as a result of it. >> the judge did toss out nine counts, leaving four for the jury to decide. they are discussing two principals were negligent. they're happy to see the story is playing out. >> we hope to have the jury verdict in the sullivans favorite tomorrow. regardless of how the jury comes out, there was no dispute from the city school system that this happened. >> the judge in this case dropped nine counts yesterday, leaving four for the jury to decide on. those deliberations will continue later this morning. lowell melser, wbal-tv 11 news. >> police are making progress in the phylicia

she says when she tried to talk to he principal at hazelwood abouttit - he insulted her by not addressingg her name. 3 4159 i'm called nana by my grandchhldren but nobody calls me grandma 05 and i just felt it was very , irre.. not reepected. not respectful of me as aawoman and as a professsonal person 14 3 a licenned cllniccl ounselor was also called to the tand today - but becauseeof technical matters - her testimony was postponee until monday... when the trial ressmes. s for the school system - officials are not commenting on the allegationn - beccase it is n accive case. live outside courthouse 3 3 a... police ppnnsylvania... to.../ maryland...// ááleavesáá 2-- people...injured....///. 3 ááaáá... &pdriver...// loses... control.../// and... is vehicle.../ flles...// over .../ the... ááitáá... happened.../// & near... the maryland line.../ fire station.../////. áátheáá chase began .../ when... police .../ responded... to.../ a... burglary.../ in... pennsslvania...////. áátheáá ddiver... was... 3 ááanáá... officer... has... minor -3 injuries...// áápoliceáá are... now 3 pnothhr uspect.../

family has filed a lawsuit against the school board of commissioners and the principals of both hazelwood and glen mount elementary middle schools. >> children are actually being hurt and sooner or later somebody is going to seriously be hurt. >> reporter: they hope by taking legal action it sends a message the system needs to be fixed. baltimore city schools would not comment because it is pending litigation but did acknowledge they will go to court today. >> the school system says it has a policy prohibiting bullying, harassment and intimidation. >>> a second student is facing charges for a fight in a baltimore county high school, the one that ended with a officer deploying pepper spray. 16 students reacted to it and were taken to the hospital. the two students arrested are charged as juveniles. >>> a developing story this morning space the governor says he is ready to support the buy out of bge's parent company. he has scheduled a news conference for this morn and according to our partner the sun he will say he changed his mind because of concessions they have agreed to make when it ta

sullivan's testimony included experiences at hazelwood. the son's teacher called multiple times and would get on the phone crying and frustrated. she went to the school several times. one time she went to get him and found him under a desk. he said the children are making fun of him. other times, he would have marks on his face and back, puncture wounds on his knee. >> the schools have to take a very assertive action immediately to let these people know that there will not tolerate bullying. >> a psychologist testified on behalf of the family and thought the boy should have received specialized placement in school and the bullying caused him to suffer depression and act aggressively. they claim in interviews with doctors that the boat -- the boy reported that his father beat him and was trying to kill him. dr horton considered that an exaggeration by a young child. >> kids can exaggerate when a parent is being a normal disciplinarian. if there were actual physical abuse, it would be caught very quickly. >> barry simms, wbal-tv 11 news. >>

the sullivan family claimed two of their children faced bullying at glenmount elementary and hazelwood elementary between 2008 and 2010 and that the school system did nothing to stop it. one argument was that the sullivans did not properly document the bullying incidents. the sullivans' attorney says what is most important is that the issue of bullying is out there for discussion. >> i am glad that this issue is getting attention and that our children may be more safe as a result. >> yesterday the judge tossed out nine different counts, leaving four for the jury to decide. those jury deliberations will continue later this morning. lowell melser, wbal-tv 11 news. >> three people have to be rescued by firefighters after a fire swept through a building in charles village. this happened just before midnight last night. the three people were treated at the scene. no word on a possible cause. a school fight got out of control on wednesday night. this happened around 9:00 p.m. at a basketball game. spectators were surprised by the number of people involved. >> there were caught up in the figh

at hazelwood, the special needs child was repeatedly bullied. called racial names. they point to repeated attempts to get the principals and others to act with no success. the boy's father says all of this bullying fundamentally changed his son. when asked how, he couldn't continue. he buried his hands in his head and sobbed. his son told him, i hate myself and i want to die. it was at this moment, his dad said he checked his son into the psychiatric program at hopkins. they're asking for $1.3 million but say it's not about the money. >> you can't just keep denying that it's happening and expect the problem to go away. >> reporter: named in the case, the principal of his first school, sydney and charlotte williams the principal at his second school. the attorney shows that the sullivans never used these bullying reporting forms. their son is now in a city charter school and the parents say all is going well. the boy when questioned by the attorney for the schools, admitted he made up a story about his dad abusing him. this will come up when talking about the correct

it also included experiences at hazelwood elementary. the teacher called multiple times and would get on the phone crying and frustrated. she went to the school several times and one time found him under the desk. he said the children were making fun of him. she testified at other times he had marks on his face, back, and puncture wounds on his knee. >> the schools have to take a very assertive actions immediately to let the people know that there will not tolerate bullying. >> the psychologist testified on behalf of the family thinking he should have received specialized placement and he suffered depression and was i to aggressively. they're questioning the credibility of the sullivans' story climbing in interviews the boy reported that his father beat him and was trying to kill him. dr horton considers that an exaggeration by a young child. >> kids exaggerate when parents are being normal disciplinarians. if there was physical abuse, i am sure that would be caught very quickly. >> the psychologist testified he had been put in the hospi

. >> they claim their children were believed at linwood elementary and hazelwood elementary between 2008 and 2010. their special needs sun, they said, was hit and kicked and stuck in the knee with a fork. >> i am going to have to tell them that the system failed him. that we fail him as parents, that we were not able to protect him. >> how did you feel him as a parent if you brought this -- you went as far as you could. you tried. >> because we were not able to correct the problem. >> jurors tell us they realized this was a difficult and monumental case that could cause school district across the country to change their policies and procedures. they did not think the evidence they heard rose to that level. >> the story did not match up. the fact that the child was choked on school property and called police. no one knows the name of the person involved in the incident at school. no one saw the child taken to the office. the principal was unaware that is to place. >> it puts schools on notice that going to school and making complaints accomplishes very little. >> the school system is -- w

. >> in one incident in hazelwood the sullivans say bullies choked him. >> somebody had picked him up and carried him to the school because he was unconscious. >> it is more scary when the people supposed to be protecting your children aren't doing anything to stop it. >> they transferred him to glenmont but say the bullying did not stop there. >> there were days where he would sit and walk and cry in his room not knowing what to do because he must have done something. >> if there was a response from the faculty then there would not as big an issue. >> they declined to comment. both principal are named in the lawsuit. >> you can't deny it is happening and expect the problem to go away. children are being hurt and sooner or later someone is going to be seriously hurt. >> there are 50 perspective jurors about a dozen stood up when they asked if they had been bullied or knew someone. >> the trial is expected to last four to five days. >> governor martin o'malley is throwing his support behind the takeover. he said it includes more benefits than the company initially proposed, exelon has

it happened in hazelwood and glenmount elementary is. >> it is not enough to deny something happens. let's pretend the kids were never hurt. let's pretend you were treated badly. it is just unfortunate. the city can do much better. >> the only person to testify today was the child but grandmother, who said she did not like the way the principle had treated her. in opening statements thursday, city attorneys questioned the credibility of the story, saying the accused principles have enough experience to handle these types of situations. police from hartford county are searching for a person of interest in a sexual assault of a woman. this is the man that are looking for. about 5 foot 3 inches, in his early 60's, with a salt and pepper beard. they are not calling him a suspect, but he may have information about the incident. it happened some time in the early evening back on december 7. police say the victim, a 30- year-old woman, was treated for sexual assault. the person of interest is being sought for questioning. three people are in police custody and police are searching for a fou

while the system id nothing.meganngilliland is at hazelwood elemmntary school in northeast bbltimorepoliceeare on the loooouttthis morning ... for a barber shoppshooter in east altimore. baltimore.around last night... a gunman opened fire -3 inside the "up ccose" barber shop oo harford road nnar &pbroodway.. barber was shot at least one time in the head.the owner offthe business nextt dooo rushed outsidd whee hee &&pheard the gunshots. he says he saw the barber stumbll to thh steps outside.... he told himmthe gunman was someone who walked into thh &pshop. 3 (abdul) "he said the guy was -3 trying to rrb him....and he tried to rush him.. and thhe guy shht him. he was consciius.. cause he told me & what happened... and asked e to caal hissparentt for him." there's a beauty shop in the rear offthe barber shop... at one point a female empllyee there heard the connrontation.. locked herself & innthe bathroom and called 9-1111 no one elss hospital..- 3& a new nationwide urvee... fiidssmore teens smoking pot and using synthetic drugs... compared to drinking alcohol. the findings were based n

stop their 10 year old son shawn from being bullied, beaten, yelled at and choked, an incident that hazelwood elementary school. >> unfortuntely, it's something that needs to happen. the public needs to know what's going on. >> their lawyer pushed for and got a jury trial. most bullying cases never make it that far and she says the ordeal left the little boy who has special needs emotionally damaged. >> he's the target of some and i will use the word terrorized. this child was terrorized by some of these boys. >> school system plans to vigorously defend itself against the lawsuit. >> i can't have no comment. you can contact our communications department and they will be able to give you information. >> but wjz got no comment there either. the sullivans say they're doing this to protect other children. >> and you can't just keep denying that it's happening and expect the problem to go away. children are actually being hurt and sooner or later, somebody is going to seriously be hurt. >> the case is moving quickly with the jury selected and two principals who were named in the civil lawsuit were

. >> reporter: the sign couldn't be clearer, no bullying, but at hazelwood and glenmount elementary schools and shawna sullivan say their son was called racial names, beaten and choked until he passed out. the boy's father said this changed his son. when he came back from a 10 minute recess, he told the jury his son told him i hate myself, i want to die. it was at this moment his dad said he checked his son into the psychiatric program at hopkins. they're asking for 1.3 million-dollars but say it's not about the money. named in the case the principal of his first school, sydney twiggs, and charlotte williams the principal at the second school, show the sullivans never used these bullying reporting forms at either school, something the sullivans say they were never told about or offered. mike schuh, wjz eye witness news. >> the case is expect today go to the jury tomorrow. >>> piers morgan is a prime target in the phone tapping conspiracy. today he had several exchanges with the investigating panel. they insist morgan listened to illegally acquired voice mails but he defended his position as

sister were bullied over and over again from 2008 to 2010 while they ateppeded two different schools, hazelwood and glenmount elementarys and that no one listened to their repeated concerns. the only one that testified friday was the children's grandmother, ann marie boletta. she said she did not appreciate the way she was treated by sidney twigs, principal here, when she tried to talk about accusations of bullying, adding fuel to the parents' story that they were not taken seriously. >> i would count myself to be a peer of his, so why would he address me by a slang word, that i consider to be a slang word. i'm called nanna by my grandchildren, but nobody calls me "grandma." i felt it was not respectful. >> because she said she was call "grandma" poletta testified she videotaped how she was treated, but the tape was not shown in court. the defense asked if she ever videotaped the children to show how they were beat up and she testified she never did. the credibility of the story was questioned. saying the atwo accused principals have more than enough experience to handle these types of situatio

sister, were bullied over and over again from 2008 to 2010 while they attended two different schools, hazelwood and glenmont elementaries and that no one listened to the schools repeated concerns. the only one that testified friday was the child's grandmother, ann marie poletta, as to there were problems whether a licensed psychologist could testify. and the woman's grandmother said she did not appreciate the way she was treated by principal sidney twigs when she tried to bring to light accusations of bullying, adding fuel to the allegations that no one took their reports seriously. >> why would he sall -- i'm called nanna by my grandchildren. nobody calls me "grandma." i felt it was not respectful. >> and besides being called "grandma" she videotaped how she was treated, but that tape was not shown in court. the accused principals twigs and charlotte woods said they have more than enough experience to handle these types of situations . >> a sexual assault of a woman. investigators are looking for this man. he's believed to be 5' 3 and in his early 60's with a salt and pepper beard. they are no

..the familyyhad recently moved from the west coast......their oldest child colleen....also &pat hazelwoodpickkd on and theenext thiig we know someone had actually gone into her locker and uuinated in her lunchbbg...... principal for help....(53:55) most of the time we would try to talk to the priicipal aad we would get whattcan help you with this time...and then.....one year later..... basically jumped him and were kidding and kicking him and one offthem....ooe chooed im till he passed out.....they decided to transfer seen to & glenmount elemmnttry........ (57:522he would cooe home there would be scratches on hii face...busted lip he was -3stabbed by one student with a - ppork in his leg.... once again......they went to the principal for help....(:18)it was always like its an inccnnenieece.... noo he sullivans have tens of mediial bills ffo oogoing counssling and psychiatric iipatient care.......proopting a lawsuit against.....he school dissrict aad the two principaas..(4448)we ooly brought this to the courts as a lass resort because of the inactivity....we are trying to coorect he proble

carolers saag as students frrm hazelwood elementary and middle school filled shopping carts at walmartvs these very deseeving students a little extra holiday cheer. 3 "itsssomething i like to do, you get to see the smile on all the kids faces, and im more than willing to do thaa." that." ,33 tteeravenn... - wide receiver... also ssgnee & autographs.../ ááandáá posed -for piituree ...with the kids...///. áátheáá foundation... hosted this event.../ forr.. theepast... 7--years.. / áágivingáá bacc... to chillrrn... ii & need.. 3 ravens fans.../ are... ástillá... celebrating... thhir.../ 24--to--10... over the ... colts. 3 this picture was sent to us by ffo45 viewwr sandy cross.this is her little one baby & tessa... overjoyed by the ravens victory! 3 show uss../ your... purple -3 pride...//. ááuploadáá 3 us .../ & thru.../ "purple"... at... fox aatimore dot coo....// ááyouáá pictures ...on our.../ "see it... shoot it... send it""page .../ at.../ foxbaltimore ot & comm.../ ááoráá go... to.../ & facebook ot & com... slashh.. on... "inside fox45"... on the -& left side... of the screen. 3& p3

grandmother testified she did not appreciate the way she was treated by principal sydney twiggs at hazelwood elementary school when she tried to bring forth allegations of bullying, adding fuel to the family story that no one took them seriously when they brought the subject up. >> i would count myself to be a peer of his. why would he address me by a slang word? i am called nana by my grandchildren. nobody calls me grandma. i don't not respected. > -- i felt not respected. >> the city attorney in opening statements questioned the credibility of the sullivan story saying the two accused principles, twiggs and williams, have more than enough experience to handle these types of situations. >> thanks to the federal government, maryland has $50 million additional dollars to improve the early childhood learning programs. tim tooten joins us with more details. >> the money will be on hand sometime this month. the state can start spinning it early next year on programs for children from birth to five years old and to help prepare them for the first day of school. research has shown children enrolle

the sullivan family filed a lawsuit against the school board and principal of hazelwood middle schoolheir son, a special needs student, was bullied and taunted by classmates at hayswood elementary school -- hazelwood elementary school and then again at glenmount. they say he was choked until he passed out and the school did nothing to help. we'll be right back in 25 minutes. óÑ @ >>> there they are, justin bieber and selena gomez. it looks like she's having the time of her life right there. but she's still facing a dangerous stalker who has threatened her life repeatedly. that stalker has asked the judge for a restraining order himself. we're going to get to that in a moment. >>> also in a moment, paris jackson, growing up so fast, as you know. starring in a new series of movies. and talking about the career advice her father, michael, gave her. says she remembers everything her dad ever told her. and sat down with ellen degeneres. the most revealing interview yet. talks about the veils. >> a beautiful girl. >>> a lot of star power here this morning. robert downey jr. will be here liv

. >> reporter: in one incident in hazelwood elementary, they say the bullies choked sean. >> somebody had actually picked him up and carried him into the school because he was still conscious while entering the school. >> it's even more scary when the people that are supposed to be protecting children aren't doing anything to stop it. >> reporter: they transferred them but say the relentless bullying didn't stop there. >> there were days he would just sit and rock and cry in his room, not knowing what to do because he must have done something. >> if there was the response from the faculty, then there wouldn't be as big of an issue. >> reporter: city schools declined to comment on the allegations. principals of both schools and the school board are named in the lawsuit. >> you can't just keep denying that it's happening and expect the problem to go away. children are actually being hurt. and sooner or later, somebody is going to seriously be hurt. >> reporter: the principals of the two baltimore city schools are in the courtroom, along with the child's parents. at courthouse east, mike

beaten, yelled at, and even choked at hazelwood and glen mount elementary schools. >> unfortunately, it's something that needs to happen. the public needs to know what was going on. >> reporter: their lawyer pushed for and got a jury trial. most bullying cases never make it that far. and she says the ordeal left the little boy who has special needs, emotionally damaged. >> i will use the word "terrorized." this child was terrorized by some of these boys. >> reporter: school system plans to vigorously defend itself against the lawsuit. >> i can't have no comment. you can contact our communications department. they'll be able to give you some information. >> reporter: but wjz got no comment there either. the sullivans say they're doing this to protect other children. >> and you can't just keep denying that it's happening and expect the problem to go away. children are actually being hurt. and sooner or later, somebody is going to seriously be hurt. >> reporter: now, the problem of bullying has made nationwide headlines. and city schools have told wjz in the past, they have taken steps

student say their son was bullied at two baltimore city schools, they say their son was bullied at hazelwood the school system yet this morning. a second student is facing charges for a fight at the school that ended with the resource officer deploying pepper spray, 16 students were taken to the hospital. the two under arrest are charged as juveniles even the governor is throughing throwing his support behind the deal. the governor is expected to make that announcement public in a half-hour or so. >>> local honors for dunbar high school. the poet's football team was honored for winning their second straight class 1-a state title. the mayor was presented with an autographed football by the team which went 12-2 on the season. way to go poets. >>> stay with wjz 13 maryla ú4 can now be enjoyed in your coffee only international delight puts the real flavours from your favourite treats inside