‘There's only one truth': Family disputes hate crime allegations in Ardrey Kell fight

Yahoo

02-04-2025

Family members of the boy involved in last month's Ardrey Kell fight are sharing their side in an exclusive interview with Channel 9′s Joe Bruno. On the same day, police said no hate crime charges would be filed after the fight.
Last month, their 15-year-old son got into a fight with a 15-year-old girl at Ardrey Kell High School.
'In any story, there are multiple versions, but there's only one truth,' the boy's mother said. 'The truth is that the story and the narrative that's been communicated broadly is not factual.'
The boy's mother and father asked not to be identified but say they wanted to do the interview to dispel 'false narratives' that are circulating in the community.
Last month, activists and family members of the female student involved held a press conference alleging she was attacked by their son because she is Muslim. They claimed he used racial slurs. The boy's parents dispute both statements and say witnesses back them up.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Family calls for change after fight at local high school
'There were no racial religious ethnic slurs ever exchanged on either side,' the boy's mother said. 'There is no evidence from all of the witnesses that unfortunately were in the vicinity of this classroom fight between two children that was fully instigated by the female student. There was never any racial cultural religious targeting whatsoever.'
The parents say this was a classroom fight that was started by the female student.
'We have no hatred and no ill will towards any ethnic group,' the boy's father said. 'We're multi-ethnic ourselves in our household and so we teach our children those same values.'
The fight came after 'incessant bullying,' according to the parents. They say their son tried to deescalate the situation and the female student 'chose violence,' resulting in their son having to defend himself.
'We don't condone violence of any sort, but she was the student who harassed our son,' the boy's mom said. 'Our son tried to deescalate. It wasn't until she physically assaulted him that the altercation took the turn that it took.'
In last month's press conference, supporters of the female student said she suffered significant injuries to her face.
The male student's family says they tried to reach out to the other family involved privately but their efforts were turned down, and following the press conference, they've been harassed and threatened
'We're telling our truth but ultimately the truth will be told in the evidence,' the boy's mom said. 'As this story continues to be shared, we won't have to be the voice of our truth because the evidence will be available to the public to see the truth for themselves.'
'We're dealing with this day by day and are thankful for the support that we've gotten from many people since the incident,' the boy's father said.
CMS suspended both students involved in the fight. The district declined to comment on specifics about the incident, citing student privacy. A CMPD statement after the incident implied an FBI investigation. However, the FBI has never confirmed the investigation's existence. The bar is high for hate crime charges and it is rare for a juvenile to be charged with a hate.
CMPD sent Channel 9 a statement late Wednesday, saying: 'CMPD detectives assigned to an FBI task force reviewed this case based on the allegation of a hate crime. After investigation, there is currently no evidence to support a criminal charge under N.C.G.S 14-3 (Punishment enhancements for crimes committed with ethnic animosity) or N.C.G.S. 14-401-14 (Ethnic Intimidation).
CMPD has confirmed that there is currently no active investigation by the FBI into this matter as there is no evidence to support that the crime occurred due to the victim's religion, race or ethnicity.'
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