Last month, South Carolina fifth-grader RaNiya Wright died shortly after getting into a fight with classmates.
Initial reports stated that the 10-year-old likely died from injuries related to the altercation, prompting her mother to speak out about the school’s handling of bullying.
Mom Ashley Wright told “Good Morning America“:
“I’m very upset with the school system, starting out, only because of the fact that I’ve been complaining about the person that she fought numerous times to them… I’m thinking they got it handled, and they failed me.”
However, a prosecutor now says that the child’s passing had nothing to do with the fight. RaNiya died from an undiagnosed medical condition, CNN reports.
#BREAKING: A Walterboro 5th-grader severely injured in classroom fight Monday died Wednesday morning, family confirms. RaNiya Wright had been unresponsive and in critical condition at MUSC, family says.#chsnews pic.twitter.com/zatOAx98PI
— ABC News 4 (@ABCNews4) March 27, 2019
On Friday, Prosecutor Duffie Stone said at a news conference:
“There was no evidence of trauma on or inside her body … that would indicate that any fight (of) any magnitude contributed to her death. There will be no criminal charges brought.”
Duffie said RaNiya was in a “five- to 10-second slap fight” on March 25 but not injured. She went to the principal’s office minutes later complaining of a headache, where she lost consciousness.
The child was taken to a hospital and died two days later on March 27.
The prosecutor said that her death was actually caused by a brain-related birth defect called arteriovenous malformation (AVM).
According to Mayo Clinic, AVM is “an abnormal tangle of blood vessels connecting arteries and veins, which disrupts normal blood flow and oxygen circulation.”
If the AVM ruptures, it can cause brain damage and stroke.
Duffie said that RaNiya had been suffering from persistent headaches for months ahead of her passing and visited doctors for the problem.
He said, “It was a matter of time.”
The child’s mother has not spoken out publicly since the press conference. It’s unclear if the children suspended due to the fight have returned to class.