HENRICO COUNTY, Va. — One Henrico mom is struggling to understand how her son suffered second-and third-degree burns to his head while he was innocently sitting in math class.
"When I came to the school, they had the fire out, which is good, but the burns were there and we had to rush him to the emergency room," she said.
That mom, who does not want her name used, said she wants swift accountability and punishment for a student who did this to her son, an eighth-grader at John Rolfe Middle School.
"They reached out to let me know that a student had burned his hair,” she said.
Police said a lighter was used. Crime Insider sources said it was a female student who flicked the lighter, leading to the 13-year-old boy's hair to quickly catch on fire.
“Why did she have a lighter to begin with?” the frustrated mother asked. “I guess we don't have detectors as students walk through the door. I guess Henrico County doesn't do that, so they wouldn't find it anyway, so I’m just, I’m just hoping this doesn't happen to anyone else."
She said doctors told her there are second-and third-degree burns on the side of her son’s head and ear.
Mom adds the humiliation and pain of the burns will take time to heal, but she doesn't know what led up to the attack.
Now, she's encouraging other parents to speak with their children, hoping they will tell them that their actions have consequences and the burns suffered by a student won't going to miraculously go away.
"You can't do that, and be like oops, I did that and keep on moving,” she said. “It doesn't and won't work like that."
Henrico Police, Henrico County Public Schools and the fire marshal are all involved in the investigation.
The teen is still recovering at VCU's burn unit.
