Family of second grader choked out by classmate calls for change

LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Eight-year-old Julian Rose is a football champion when playing Roblox on his dad's phone.

He finds safety and solace in the online game as he recovers from an incident in his classroom at Doral Academy's Pebble Road campus.

"My neck hurt. And then my thumb, or my hands felt really numb," Julian said.

He's in second grade at the public charter school.

On March 7, Julian had just turned in his math packet and was heading back to his desk.

"While I was walking on my way, the kid came behind me and put me in a chokehold. Out of nowhere. I just went flat on the ground. And then when I woke up, I saw, like, five teachers," he said.

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Julian's mother, Armineh, filed a police report accusing one of his second grade classmates of assault.

The police report says it's unknown how long Julian was unconscious, but it was long enough for several teachers to be summoned and gather in his classroom.

Julian says when he regained consciousness, he saw his classmates gathered around him.

"They were crying and screaming," thinking he might be dead, he recalled.

Armineh got the call from Doral Academy's nurse.

"I was like, 'I'm sorry, what?' And she said, 'He went unconscious. He's stable now. He's in the health office, but we need you to come pick him up.'"

The Rose family met with school Principal Beckie Williams the following day.

"We were told that there is legislation in place that protects students under the age of 11 when things like this happen," said Armineh. "And that the events that took place were not grounds for expulsion."

Armineh recorded the meeting on her cell phone. On the recording, Williams says, "This isn't something that we've ever — I've never had this happen at our campus, so I have no words for it."

Julian's family learned the other student was suspended for a few days as a result of the incident.

"And then they had Spring Break. So, it was just an extended Spring Break, really," said Tyler Rose, Julian's father.

Julian's parents pushed for more during the meeting with Principal Williams:

Armineh Rose: "What would warrant an expulsion? Like, how bad did this have to be?"
Tyler Rose: "What if he killed him?"
Armineh: "What if he held his jugular down long enough?"
Tyler: "What if he held for, like, two seconds longer?"
Armineh: "Paralysis? This was his neck. This wasn't bones. This wasn't a bruise or a bump. This was his neck."

"I started to think about what second-grade kid could know how to do that without proper training," Tyler told Channel 13 chief investigator Darcy Spears.

"I later learned this other student is trained in martial arts," said Armineh. "He has a jiu jitsu background."

The other student had briefly trained at Syndicate Mixed Martial Arts on Rainbow Boulevard and Sunset Road, where zero tolerance truly does mean zero. While Doral Academy, citing state law, simply moved the child to another class, the MMA school kicked him out.

"The foundation of everything we're doing is based on respect, humility, and discipline," said Syndicate jiu jitsu trainer Jerry Shapiro. "There's never, ever, a situation where somebody should be choked unconscious unless your life is in danger."

Tyler Rose says the only person whose life was in danger was his son's, and he feels like accountability should match the severity of the action.

"I still can't make sense of what's going on," Tyler said.

In the recorded meeting at Doral Academy, Williams tells Julian's parents that her hands are tied by current state law.

"I don't have any options in the sense of removing the child from the school," Williams says. "I mean, if we look at what legislation has been put in place, our lawmakers have put in place that students under a certain age cannot be expelled from school."

She says change must come from Carson City.

"This is where I think it's a good opportunity to reach out to your legislators," she told the Roses.

"I'm going to take this as far as I can," Armineh responded.

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13 Investigates took the question to Nevada Assemblywoman Angela Taylor, a Democrat who serves as vice chair of the Assembly Committee on Education.
While Taylor didn't feel it was appropriate to comment on the specific incident, she is optimistic that a bill she introduced will provide the disciplinary resources schools need.

She believes Assembly Bill 285 will strike the right balance between intervention for aggressors and safeguarding victims, along with a companion bill that Gov. Joe Lombardo introduced. The bottom line for both bills: making it easier for schools to suspend or expel violent students.

If passed, it will be months before any new laws go into effect. In the interim, Julian and his family are doing what they can.

For Julian, that means, "try to stay away" from the other student, whom he still has to see on a daily basis.

"It's devastating," said Armineh. "It's heartbreaking. I feel really helpless."

She feels like the law provides more protection for the aggressor than the victim.

Doral Academy's Pebble Road campus declined to speak with Channel 13 on camera for this report.

Principal Beckie Dehner-Williams sent the following statement:

13 Investigates will continue to follow the progress of, and provide updates on, the bills that would give schools more options in the disciplinary process.