Florida bullying cases raise tort issues

Florida has two high profile bullying cases in the national spotlight right now that your Clearwater personal injury attorney is examining. Both can show us a lot about the role personal injury law plays in bullying cases while being extremely different cases.

The first is the tragic case of Rebecca Sedgwick, the 12-year-old Florida girl who committed suicide in September of this year after being bullied and harassed both physically and on the internet. Two other girls, one 12 years old and one 14 years old, began the campaign of harassment and even followed Sedwick to a different school through social media. After a year of cruel and relentless harassment, Rebecca Sedwick took her own life. The other two girls have been charged with felony aggravated stalking. Although Florida is one of 49 states that has an anti-bullying law and is one of 47 states which includes “electronic harassment” in its definition of bullying, that law was not used in this case.

Because this case was so extreme, the Sheriff in charge of the investigation decided to use existing felony statutes when charging the perpetrators. In addition, the Sheriff stated that his investigation will determine if there are any charges that can be brought against the parents of the two girls responsible for the bullying.


The second high profile case of bullying in Florida is that of two Miami Dolphins’ players, Jonathan Martin, and Richie Incognito. Martin abruptly left the team, citing continued harassment and bullying from fellow offensive lineman Incognito. After voicemails surfaced with racial slurs being made by Incognito to Martin, who is African-American, and a video was released showing Incognito raging around a Miami bar shirtless while on a profanity-filled tirade, Incognito was suspended during an investigation of the charges. Martin alleges harassment by Incognito and other teammates that went far beyond any normal rookie “hazing,” and caused him severe emotional and physical distress.

Both of the above cases are extreme in their own ways. In the first case, the death of a 12-year-old made the involvement of the criminal justice system appropriate. But what about bullying that falls short of a crime, but does constitute a breach of a duty of care owed by a school to provide a safe learning environment for its students, or the negligence of parents who fail to properly supervise their children both on and off social media? In many cases, the most effective recourse for recovery of damages for injuries sustained from physical bullying, or for emotional suffering from cyberbullying by children not properly supervised by parents is a personal injury lawsuit. Filing a personal injury lawsuit will hold the bullies and those responsible for monitoring their behavior accountable. These lawsuits can seek damages for medical expenses, impaired physical and mental abilities, pain and suffering, mental anguish, punitive damages, court costs, and other fees.

In the second case, Martin could file a lawsuit against his employer for failing to provide a work environment free from harassment. In Martin’s case, there is an added layer: if Martin was, in fact, being harassed and bullied even in part due to his race, Martin can bring a federal claim. Although there are no federal laws directly addressing bullying, there are federal laws prohibiting discriminatory harassment; i.e. harassment based on a protected class, such as race. Discriminatory harassment is a violation of the Civil Rights Act, giving rise to a federal claim.

Because bullying has become so pervasive and so extreme, we need to look beyond current anti-bullying laws for new strategies that will hold perpetrators accountable and deter similar behavior. If you have been a victim of bullying and/or harassment, contact your personal injury attorney at Shiner Law Group today.

Latoya Bond