The family of the Missouri girl who has been charged with beating 16-year-old Kaylee Gain into unconsciousness says she is the real victim and had been “harassed and bullied” before the caught-on-video assault.
The 15-year-old’s aunt told Daily Mail that her niece – described as an honor student with a stellar record at Hazelwood East High School — was defending herself during the viral March 8 fight in Spanish Lakes, Missouri.
**Watch Disturbing fighting footage 👇
The accused attacker’s loved ones are asking the juvenile court system to show “compassion” for the teen and they are seeking $150,000 in donations toward her legal defense.
The Post is not naming the girl because she has been charged as a minor.
The teen suspect’s family on Saturday launched a petition on Charge.org, begging Chief Juvenile Officer Rick Gaines of the 21st Circuit Court not to charge her as an adult.
The petition highlighted the girl’s many academic and athletic accomplishments, including the fact that she speaks four languages, plays the violin in the school orchestra and volleyball on the school’s team, and had recently been selected for college-level AP classes.
“Prior to an incident on March 8th where she was seen defending herself from harassment and bullying, she had never been in trouble,” it read. “Her work as a scholar was tainted by the bullying she had to endure at school.”
The family complained that “this single event is being used” to define the teen’s character – and hit out at Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey for saying that the 15-year-old should be charged as an adult if Gain does not survive.
“It is unjust that such an accomplished young woman should be charged as an adult for assault without considering all the facts of the case that led to the incident where harm occurred,” the petition continued.
The family asked that all aspects of the teenager’s life be considered as her case winds its way through the courts, “most importantly her victimhood as a bullied student who was merely defending herself under intense and flight vs fight circumstances,” it stated.
In the wake of the fight, the juvenile suspect’s family was said to have received “multiple racist death threats” and has been subjected to alleged “doxxing” attempts, with people seeking to release personal information about the teen.
“The focus should be to pray for the healing and reconciliation of both parties, as this truly was a teenage fight that should’ve never happened to begin with, but did and spun completely out of control,” the relatives of the accused argued.
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As of Thursday afternoon, more than 500 supporters have signed the online petition.
The family had previously started a GoFundMe campaign to help with the girl’s legal bills, but it was swiftly removed by the platform for violating its terms of service, after raising close to $3,000.
The funds have since been returned to the donors.
The now-defunct fundraiser claimed the teen was “unfairly” portrayed as a bully rather than as a victim “In a complicated situation,” the Daily Mail reported.
The sickening video of the brawl showed Gain being repeatedly punched and having her head smashed against the pavement, leaving her with a life-threatening skull fracture, according to her family.
Nearly two weeks after the beating, Gain has yet to regain consciousness, after suffering brain swelling and bleeding.
“The full scope and extent of Kaylee’s injuries and prognosis for recovery cannot be determined until, with God’s grace, she regains consciousness, and the family asks that you continue to keep Kaylee in your thoughts and prayers as she continues to recover,” family attorney Bryan Kaemmerer wrote in a statement released Monday.
