A high school sophomore took her own life after being relentlessly bullied by fellow students at school.
Stephenie “Stevie” English died on September 22 at the age of 16, leaving behind a loving family who only learned of the bullying after her death.
An adult friend who collected letters from Stevie’s classmates made the discovery, recalling on Wednesday how “90 percent of the letters” had been apologetic for repeated instances of bullying.
“I’m so sorry about the way you were treated,” some said, according to Amber Murphy — others, “You didn’t deserve to be treated like that.”
Stevie’s friends subsequently confirmed several cases of bullying due to the girl’s weight and glasses, as D’Iberville High staffers claim they have received no such reports. One said Stevie was pushed down a flight of stairs by a male student.
Stephenie ‘Stevie’ English died on September 22 at the age of 16, leaving behind a loving family who only learned of the bullying after her death
Classmates are seen paying tribute to the Mississippi youngster – after others were involved in a bullying campaign that culminated in Stevie taking his own life
“He just looked at her, laughed and walked away,” 14-year-old Abby Powers said The Sun Heraldwhich detailed the alleged incident that she said occurred last August.
She added that Stevie, one of her best friends, refused to report what happened because she didn’t think anything would be done.
The high school student added that Stevie was left with bruises on her back after the attack — one of several incidents that she and others now say led to the girl’s suicide.
“When I started getting to know her, I realized she was being bullied,” said the girl Stevie met four years ago while playing softball.
“I know plenty of people who told her to back off.”
She gave the interview alongside her mother, Kiersten Ellis, who claimed she went so far as to take Stevie to the school office to report the bullying.
She did that several times, but apparently without results.
Kiersten went on to recall how kids who bullied Stevie called her “fat” and “four eyes,” and how the girl at one point approached her to say she was tired of “nagging.”
An adult who collected letters from Stevie’s classmates made the discovery, recalling on Wednesday how “90 percent of letters” had been apologetic for repeated incidents of bullying
Stevie’s friends subsequently confirmed several cases of bullying due to the girl’s weight and glasses, as D’Iberville High staffers claim they have received no such reports.
Abby described how Stevie would regularly go to the toilet for long periods of time before emerging with bloodshot eyes.
“In ROTC, she put her head on her desk [Reserve Officers’ Training Corps] and cry,” the girl recalled, referring to the junior leadership training and development program for aspiring military personnel available at the school.
Things would only escalate from there, others revealed – with friends going on to describe a particularly harrowing event that happened the week before Stevie died.
It happened outside the school, near the parking lot, several people said, where Stevie and her boyfriend were parked in his truck.
They had had an intimate moment, those familiar with what happened admitted, before adding that, unbeknownst to the couple, at least one boy recorded them from the parking lot.
A subsequent video then circulated through the school, leaving Stevie beside himself, said friends who spoke to the Herald.
She and the boy were suspended for the rest of the week, causing her father, Jason Walker English, to become involved.
The doting dad also spoke to the newspaper and recalled how he took her to talk to her counselor towards the end of the week, before staying by her side on Friday and Saturday.
Saturday night was the last time he spoke to her, Jason said, remembering her saying goodnight before he went to bed.
The girl’s grandmother told how one of those who bullied Stevie attended her funeral – recalling how she approached her and eventually accepted her apology.
The next morning she was found dead – of an apparent suicide.
“Stevie was a beautiful person who made a terrible decision, a permanent decision,” her father said in a statement, adding that he was not ready to be interviewed.
“Before we glorify a hashtag, a social media trend, or start bullying someone, remember that there is another guy or girl out there who might see it, search for it, or just stumble upon it and think suicide is the right answer. not.
“There is no pain, no tragedy, no problem that Jesus cannot solve,” he concluded.
However, his parents did speak to the newspaper to provide even more insight behind the bullying campaign they blame for Stevie’s death.
“I have no doubt in my mind that Stevie did what she did because she couldn’t go back to school and face that,” said Ginny English, who did not immediately respond to a DailyMail.com request for comment on Wednesday afternoon.
She recounted how one of the girls Stevie had bullied attended her funeral in Long Beach – and recalled learning the child’s identity from several of Stevie’s friends.
According to them, the girl once told Stevie to kill herself, which led to Ginny approaching her during the solemn ceremony.
The unnamed youth responded by bursting into tears, which led to Ginny giving her a hug, she recalled.
She told the girl, “We can forgive you, but do better,” before her husband, Steve English, intervened to discuss the subsequent Harrison County Sheriff’s investigation, which found no bullying behavior whatsoever.
An investigator who handled the case told him he had interviewed about “50 or 60 kids” but found no evidence of any wrongdoing.
Steve even remembered seeing the video taken of Stevie and her boyfriend, which he said was filmed from so far away. The only way he could recognize her was because of her curly hair.
A close friend who met Stevie playing softball four years ago said the bullying had been going on for years, while another claimed “all” of the other students were part of the intense campaign
Meanwhile, his wife, who spoke to the Herald two weeks after Stevie’s death, claimed the bullying still occurs, even ‘at death’.
She claimed that students still said mean things about Stevie and mocked her death to Abby while on the bus.
“They’re calling her a whore,” she said, and Abby added that she reported the incidents to an assistant principal, who let the children responsible off with a warning.
The girl claimed the bullying continued, with the group responsible even coming up with a crude name for the children who were friends with the deceased: The Goon Squad.
“Everyone,” Murphy said of the students at the Biloxi school. “They knew she was being bullied.”
“Stevie’s still being bullied to death,” Ginny added.
Abby’s mother, Holly Powers, told the newspaper: “What makes me angry is that the school says they have zero tolerance for bullies, but they don’t do anything about it.”
Bullying is prohibited under Mississippi law. Employees are expected to report cases to senior leaders, who have policies in place to address this.
The school, part of the Harrison County School District, maintained during the now-completed investigation that it had received no reports of bullying.
The story was confirmed by local police.
The district reportedly declined to speak on the subject when contacted by the Herald.