Family files lawsuit against Brooklyn high school football coach accused of beating student
MIDWOOD, Brooklyn (WABC) -- A high school football coach appeared in court Tuesday and is now facing criminal charges and a civil lawsuit after allegedly beating a then-14-year-old student.
The teen was beaten so badly, he lost consciousness and needed six staples in his head, his family said.
When Deslyn Willock got the call to pick her son up from James Madison High School last September, she says the only thing she was told was that he was hurt.
"When I got into the school, my son was going in and out of consciousness, he was just lying on the floor, bleeding from his head, and I think it was a nurse who was applying pressure to his head," Willock said.
The now-15-year-old, who wishes to stay anonymous, says he wasn't feeling well that day because he was recovering from COVID and fell asleep in an afterschool video review session with his football team.
He says one of the coaches, Nicholas Nugent, was upset and brought him into a stairwell.
"He slammed twice, so the first time I hit my head and then, you know, I was on the floor and then the second time, I had a normal hand was full of blood," the victim said.
Willock says her son had to get six staples in his head, hurt his shoulder and now, according to their attorney, is showing signs of a traumatic brain injury.
"This is someone that we had looked up to, somebody that we trust, because there is no way that you wouldn't think as a mother or as a child that your coach educator is going to hurt your child in such a way," Willock said.
Nugent was arrested a few days after the incident and charged with multiple counts of assault and endangering the welfare of a child. He's currently out of supervised release.
Last month, Willock filed a lawsuit against Nugent, the city and the Department of Education.
The DOE released a statement saying, "The safety of our students is our number one priority. We will review the lawsuit."
The teen says he switched schools after the incident and says football was his life before this happened, now he says he doesn't think he'll ever play again.
----------
* Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts
Submit a tip or story idea to Eyewitness News
Have a breaking news tip or an idea for a story we should cover? Send it to Eyewitness News using the form below. If attaching a video or photo, terms of use apply.
