A woman who was arrested for allegedly assaulting an 11-year-old boy she believed bullied her daughter "vehemently denies the charge," her attorney said this afternoon.
"Her defense is she didn't do it," said Ben Adams, attorney for Delia Garcia-Bratcher, 30, of Santa Rosa.
[Previous: Mom, 30, Arrested for Abuse of Child She Claims Bullied Her Daughter, Sonoma Deputies Say.]
The Sonoma County Sheriff's Office arrested Garcia-Bratcher for allegedly inflicting injury to a child on Friday at Olivet Elementary Charter School. She was released from Sonoma County Jail after posting $30,000 bail.
Her arraignment is scheduled for Thursday morning in Sonoma County Superior Court. Sheriff's officials said this afternoon that they have been unable to find a nexus between the boy and Garcia-Bratcher's daughter and have been unable to determine whether any bullying ever occurred between the two.
"Further investigation is being conducted at this time," the sheriff's office said in a statement.
Sheriff's officials said that Garcia-Bratcher went to the school grounds on Willowside Road in unincorporated Sonoma County west of Santa Rosa around noon Friday without checking in at the office.
Garcia-Bratcher confronted the 11-year-old boy about bullying her daughter and grabbed the boy by the throat in front of numerous young witnesses, including her son who pointed out the alleged bully, sheriff's officials said.
Garcia-Bratcher then reportedly threatened the victim about bullying her daughter, according to the sheriff's office. No adults witnessed the assault, sheriff's officials said.
The boy had red marks consistent with being grabbed in the neck by an adult, and school staff photographed the marks as soon as they became aware of the incident, according to the sheriff's office.
The deputy who investigated the incident interviewed children who were present during the assault, sheriff's officials said.
Adams, Garcia-Bratcher's attorney, said his client adamantly denies any wrongdoing.
"She has children and wants them to have a normal life," he said. "The state has the responsibility to protect our children, and if the state can't do that, I don't know that we're supposed to abandon our children to bullies," Adams said.
Jennie Snyder, superintendent of the Piner-Olivet Union School District, did not return calls about the incident today.
--Bay City News
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