A ninth-grader at a Catholic high school in Louisiana has been charged with a hate crime after a video surfaced of the student committing a racist act against a Black student, police said.
The video circulated social media on March 9 and showed a white male student throwing cotton at a Black male student seated in the school's cafeteria before whipping at him with what looks like a belt.
The 15-year-old at Vandebilt Catholic High in Houma received two charges, simple battery and hate crime, for his actions. The student has been booked at the Terrebonne Parish juvenile detention center, according to Sheriff Tim Soignet in a news release.
Soignet shared on Wednesday that he is "very pleased that the school took a front stand on this."
"When we received the complaint, we immediately put our detectives on it," Soignet said. "They worked through the weekend so we could get to this point and effect an arrest on that juvenile."
The sheriff wasn't the only one to praise the school for taking action either, as Jerome Boykin, the Terrebonne Parish NAACP President, shared his thoughts on Wednesday, USA Today reported.
"Vandebilt Catholic High School's administration and the Terrebonne Parish Sheriff's Office sent a strong message to the community that this type of crime will not be tolerated," Boykin said. "The young man is only 15 years of age, and I hope that he can learn from his mistake."
School president Jeremy Guelden shared that the school does not tolerate racism or bullying after they said they were investigating the incident earlier this week.
"School officials are working in cooperation with diocesan officials, students and parents to investigate this matter and are committed to ensuring that all individuals involved are held accountable in accordance with school policies," the school said.
The victim's parents also shared their thanks for the community supporting them in a statement last week.
Soignet shared that the case is still open, and they are continuing to investigate the incident.
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