By Matthew Ablon
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FORT WORTH, Texas (KTVT) — The parents of a Fort Worth student are suing a private Episcopal school after he was injured by students who reportedly tricked him into a viral TikTok challenge.
CBS News Texas obtained the lawsuit, filed in Tarrant County District Court on May 26. The suit claims that earlier in the month, the teen was lured into a hallway at All Saints’ Episcopal School during his lunch period by three other students to supposedly take part in a video being filmed.
However, the suit says the students told him to jump, only to then kick his legs out from under him mid-jump as part of a trick for the viral “skull crusher” challenge. As a result, the suit says he landed on his thoracic spine and hit his head on the ground, rendering him unconscious. The suit notes he was not aware of this plan.
The trick, the suit says, left the teen with fractures to three thoracic vertebrae, a severe concussion, a spinal cord injury, and temporary paralysis. The students also reportedly mocked the teen and filmed him in his injured state for social media attention.
Previous warnings reportedly raised The suit alleges the other students had done this to at least six other students at All Saints’ Episcopal School and that this incident was preventable. It also claims the other incidents were captured on security cameras and that the school did not intervene. The suit also claims the teen’s family met with school leaders at least three times prior to the incident to warn them about the bullying the teen faced, saying it would escalate to physical violence. The school reportedly promised the teen’s family it would prevent violence, the suit claims leadership failed, and that headmaster Wallace Worden admitted as much after visiting the family’s home after the incident.
Beyond the incident, the teen’s family claims in the suit that All Saints’ moved the teen around the school without a neck brace or spinal board and forced him to stand and walk, even with three fractured vertebrae. They also claimed nobody called for an ambulance for 45 minutes after the incident, and that this all likely made the teen’s injuries worse or potentially threatened his life.
What the family wants The suit claims All Saints’ Episcopal School was negligent and breached its in loco parentis obligations, did not have a nurse’s office in the Upper School, and did not have staff stationed in the hallways during the lunch period. The teen’s family seeks monetary relief after a trial by jury, along with court costs, actual damages, exemplary damages, and pre- and post-judgement interest at the maximum legal rate, along with other relief that the teen may prove he is entitled to.
The suit notes that the teen’s attorneys plan to conduct discovery under Level 3 of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure and say the case isn’t governed by an expedited actions process because they seek monetary relief over $1 million.
The teen’s parents said in a statement to CBS News Texas on May 29 that “Every parent wants their children to be safe. That is our most important job as parents. That is the bare minimum we all expect when we extend trust for the care of our children to another. All Saints Episcopal School failed our son in that fundamental duty, with devastating and permanent consequences for our family that will forever change our lives. We simply cannot stay silent when the school that was supposed to protect him failed our son in so many critical ways.”
All Saints’ Episcopal told CBS News Texas it is aware of the lawsuit as of May 29, but had not yet been served and does not comment on pending litigation.
A closer look at the challenge The “skull-crusher” or “skull-breaker” challenge isn’t a recent trend; it dates back to at least 2020. The BBC News service in the United Kingdom first reported it in March of that year, describing the challenge in detail. BBC News noted that prosecutors in New Jersey had charged two children with aggravated assault over the prank, and that TikTok said it would remove videos showing it from the platform.
In a post on its newsroom in February 2020, TikTok said “we do not allow content that encourages or replicates dangerous challenges that might lead to injury. In fact, it’s a violation of our Community Guidelines and we will continue to remove this type of content from our platform.” TikTok also offered a guide for parents that explains the platform’s safety tools and other resources, and urged users to report videos that showed the challenge.
The Center for Injury Research & Prevention at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia shared more about why the challenge can be dangerous in March of 2020. The center said at the time that falls from five feet or greater “are at higher risk to cause skull fractures and intracranial bleeds”, making concussions more likely to happen.
Prolonged concussion symptoms, the center said, has long-lasting effects for patients, with prior studies showing that 75% of patients with prolonged symptoms requiring accommodation to return to school, 25% requiring homebound tutoring, and 60% seeing a decline in grades. The center also estimated that the direct costs – associated with therapy, medication and physician visits – exceed $3,500 per patient, totaling over $200 million per year in the U.S.
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