GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Wednesday marks three months since an Alger Heights Middle School student was shot in the face by another student.
It happened outside the school building in the middle of the school day.
The victim, 13-year-old Javeon Childrey, is okay. But his mom tells me she believes there’s an adult responsible for this and they need to be held accountable.
“It’s been tough,” says Bianca Bridgeforth, Javeon’s mother.
The bathroom near Alger Middle in Grand Rapids is where Javeon Childrey was hit by a bullet in the cheek. Another student has since been criminally charged with careless discharge and larceny of a firearm.
That May day forever changed Javeon’s and Bianca’s lives.
"He's a normal kid,” says Bianca, “just little challenges."
As he recovers, Bianca has turned her attention to the adults in the district, including Alger Middle School Principal Charlie Lovelady.
“I filed a formal complaint, due to my resources knowing that Lovelady walked these kids out the school,” she says.
The Grand Rapids Public Schools (GRPS) public safety incident report, obtained by FOX 17, backs up that claim. It reads, in part, that two students left the building on May 21 after being disruptive.
They somehow gained reentry and Principal Lovelady told them they needed to be searched if they wanted to be back in the building.
The students refused, and Lovelady asked that they eat lunch outside the building, under the pavilion.
Bianca says this sent her son into harm’s way.
Grand Rapids
DOCUMENTS: Alger Middle School students 'off the radar' day of shooting
“That’s when my child was shot in his face,” she says.
Bianca says she never got a phone call that day. In the executive summary of this incident, the district says they called but no contact was made.
“I feel like there were other steps he could have took [sic] before those kids was [sic] walked out the school,” Bianca contends.
The school issued the following statement to FOX 17:
“GRPS remains heartbroken that a student was injured outside Alger Middle School. Since the incident in May, multiple GRPS leaders have engaged with the student’s family, but we recognize that these discussions have not met their expectations. Our team is committed to working diligently to rebuild trust with the family in the coming days.”
Bianca has pulled all her kids from GRPS.
“Honestly, I would not recommend it,” she says. “This school needs a lot more than what’s just been thrown in that short time.”
Bianca tells me this is only the beginning.
“Mentally it’s a long recovery. Physically he’s a normal kid,” she says.
I did ask Bianca if they plan to take legal action. She did not comment on that at this time.
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