A 14-year-old primary school student was stabbed yesterday and what's even more alarming is that he was stabbed by his fifteen year old classmate. Both boys are in the standard six class at the Salvation Army Primary School. We won't use their names because they are minors but this afternoon the school's principal Barbara Lino confirmed to 7NEWS that it did happen. Lino says the 15 year old was beaten up a week ago and after a week of taunts from his classmate, yesterday evening around 5 pm he'd had enough and pulled out a knife he took to school with him.
Barbara Lino, Principal
"Yesterday evening after they were dismissed, they were fooling around the younger child was like dissing the older one and he apparently snapped, that is all I can say."
Keith Swift,
So what exactly happened?
Barbara Lino,
"He used a small pen knife with which he inflicted a wound to the boy's side. I called the home this morning to check on the child and I asked the mom how he was and she said it wasn't anything serious because the doctor said it wasn't serious.
We found out what was the problem, we talked it over, and one of the boys, the one who inflicted the wound, has been suspended and the boys at the end shook hands and promised not to do anything like that again."
Keith Swift,
How serious is the school taking this incident? A student stabs another student.
Barbara Lino,
"I take it seriously because then I don't want parents to feel like we allow things to happen here because I do not. If that child had come to me from last week and told me what happened to him, what happened yesterday would not have happened because what I would have done, I would have called in the school community liaison officer and we would have solved the problem from last week and so it would not have gone that far."
Keith Swift,
You think there was anything you could have done to prevent this incident?
Barbara Lino,
"No, as I said the teachers had already left. It happened after school hours. We could not have prevented it because we did not know what was in the child's mind, we couldn't have prevented that. But right now what I have done right now, I have never had the need to do it before, it means I will have to do random searching, body searching, and things."
The parents of both boys have spoken and the matter won't be reported to police. The 14 year old has been suspended for one week.
