No charges will be filed against three Oklahoma girls whose fight with nonbinary teen Bex Benedict in a school bathroom landed them in the hospital just a day before their deaths.
The 16-year-old’s death sparked a storm of protest among LGBT activists who accused Owasso Public Schools of ignoring Nex’s bullying in a state where students can only use designated bathrooms. their biological sex.
But a state medical examiner concluded last week that a Nex intentionally committed suicide following a drug overdose, and Tulsa District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler announced Thursday that no crime had been committed .
“I have to be satisfied — like any prosecutor — that a judge or jury would be satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that a crime was committed,” Kunzweiler said.
“Based on all the evidence gathered, this fight was an example of mutual combat.”
Family of Nex Benedict, who died a day after being attacked at school, challenges medical examiner’s ruling that non-binary teen killed himself
Tulsa District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler announced Thursday that no crime had been committed and no charges would be filed against the three girls Nex fought against.
The prosecutor also revealed that police found “brief notes written by Benedict, which appeared to be related to the suicide.”
“The precise contents of the suicide note are a personal question that the family will have to address in the privacy of their own lives,” he added.
Police body camera footage showed Nex describing the attack just two hours later, while they were being questioned by officers at hospital on February 7.
“I was attacked at school,” Nex told the police officer.
“They said something like ‘why are they laughing like that’ and they were talking about us, in front of us,” Nex added. “So I went up and poured water on it and all three came to me.”
Nex was released from the hospital but was readmitted the next day after he began to lose consciousness.
The Oklahoma medical examiner’s report said Benedict’s death was caused by a combined overdose of diphenhydramine and fluoxetine and ruled it a suicide.
But Nex’s relatives issued a statement following the partial release of the teen’s autopsy, saying the full report showed the child suffered clear signs of “physical trauma.”
Nex Benedict, non-binary, of Oklahoma, died by suicide from a drug overdose, not from injuries suffered in a school fight, according to the medical examiner.
Nex messages sent to family member after fight, shared by Fox23
Hundreds of people attended a candlelight vigil for Nex and their family in nearby Tulsa.
People sing at a vigil for the death of Nex Benedict outside the Stonewall Inn in New York
Their deaths became a rallying point for trans and LGBT activists across the country – and several vigils were held in the student’s memory.
“The Benedicts feel compelled to provide a summary of these findings which have not yet been released by the medical examiner’s office,” the family said through its attorney.
“Particularly those who contradict the allegations that the assault on Nex was significant.
“As noted in the full report, the medical examiner found numerous areas of physical trauma on Nex’s body that speak to the severity of the assault.”
The case has become a flashpoint in Oklahoma, which has vigorously cracked down on LGBT rights and currently has more than 40 bills on the issue under consideration by the state legislature, including 14 aimed at amending school policy.
State schools superintendent Ryan Walters blamed the backlash on “radical leftists,” insisting: “There are not multiple genders. There are two. This is how God created us.
“I really see that there is a civil war going on, where the left is really fighting for the soul of our country,” he added.
“They are undermining the very principles that have made this country great, our Judeo-Christian values and our traditions in this country.”
Oklahoma state senator Tom Woods sparked fury after calling trans people “scum” while being questioned about the teen’s death.
Insisting that “his heart goes out” to the family, he told a community meeting that “I represent a constituency that doesn’t want this filth in Oklahoma.”
State Sen. Tom Woods (left) sparked fury after calling trans people “dirt” while being questioned about their deaths. State Schools Superintendent Ryan Walters (R) blamed the backlash on ‘left-wing radicals’
A walkout for Nex Benedict at Owasso high school on Monday, February 26
“We are a religious state and we are going to fight it to keep this filth out of the state of Oklahoma because we are a Christian state – we are a moral state.”
Federal authorities have opened an investigation into the school district, and Kunzweiler admitted that civil action against those involved could still continue.
“It is preferable whether or not individuals choose to use an attorney to obtain remedies in the civil area of the justice system,” he added.
“The scope of these investigations is not as limited as the issue of criminal/delinquent conduct that I have been asked to address in this matter.”