On Thursday,'s "Anderson Live," Anderson was joined by his good friend Andy Cohen. Among the many trending topics discussed on The First 15, Anderson and Andy talked about an Ohio dad and his son who allegedly bullied their neighbor, a young girl with cerebral palsy.
Hope Holcomb, who is 10 years old, says she is afraid to come out of her house or ride on the school bus because her neighbor, William Bailey, and his son, a classmate, constantly mock the way she walks. Hope's grandmother videotaped William and his son allegedly making fun of Hope to shed light on the incident, which they say is a pattern of torment, and they're pursuing charges of aggravated menacing against the Baileys.
"I couldn’t believe it," Tricia Knight told the New York Daily News after seeing the neighbor supposedly mock her daughter. "I'm saying to him, 'Are you serious? My daughter is seeing you.'"
But Bailey denies he was mocking Hope.
"I love that little girl," he told CantonRep.com. "I never even meant that or anything at all toward little Hope. I don’t make fun of anybody with a disability." He alleges that Hope's parents have been bullying his son, who has seizures and ADHD.
Both families are due in court on Oct. 9 to determine if criminal charges will be filed, reports the New York Daily News.
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Hope Holcomb is scared to ride the bus or leave her home, her mom says.
A dispute between next-door neighbors in Ohio reached new heights this
week, with one man facing possible criminal charges after being accused
of taunting a 10-year-old girl with cerebral palsy, law enforcement
officials said Wednesday.
The family of Hope Holcomb, 10, says they were waiting at the bus stop in East Sparta last week when they videotaped neighbor William Bailey, 43, and his 9-year-old son walking with a pronounced limp. Hope’s mother, Tricia Knight, told the Daily News she was certain Bailey was making fun of her disabled daughter.
“I couldn’t believe it. I’m saying to him, ‘are you serious? My daughter is seeing you,’” she said.
But William Bailey adamantly denies the accusations, saying he was injured on the job and was suffering from bruised ribs and a twisted back when the video was shot.
“I would never do that,” he told the News. “I wasn’t out to make this kid look bad.”
Hope Holcomb’s family said they are pursuing charges of aggravated menacing with the Canton prosecutor’s office.
They say the alleged mocking of the disabled girl was part of a long string of harassment by both Bailey and his son.
“I don’t want my daughter to live in fear,” Knight said. “She doesn’t want her blinds open, doesn’t want to go outside.”
For his part, Bailey and his wife Vikki say their son suffers from seizures and ADHD and has been teased by the Knight family.
“My kid is sick too,” Bailey said.
“This whole thing has gotten blown out of proportion,” he added.
Both families detail a once strong friendship that has deteriorated into calls to the police and allegations of harassment.
Knight said Hope still wants to be friends with the Bailey children.
“All she wants is for them to stop being mean and be nice.”
Both parties will appear for a hearing on October 9 to determine whether criminal charges will be filed.
vcavaliere@nydailynews.com
The family of Hope Holcomb, 10, says they were waiting at the bus stop in East Sparta last week when they videotaped neighbor William Bailey, 43, and his 9-year-old son walking with a pronounced limp. Hope’s mother, Tricia Knight, told the Daily News she was certain Bailey was making fun of her disabled daughter.
“I couldn’t believe it. I’m saying to him, ‘are you serious? My daughter is seeing you,’” she said.
But William Bailey adamantly denies the accusations, saying he was injured on the job and was suffering from bruised ribs and a twisted back when the video was shot.
“I would never do that,” he told the News. “I wasn’t out to make this kid look bad.”
Hope Holcomb’s family said they are pursuing charges of aggravated menacing with the Canton prosecutor’s office.
They say the alleged mocking of the disabled girl was part of a long string of harassment by both Bailey and his son.
“I don’t want my daughter to live in fear,” Knight said. “She doesn’t want her blinds open, doesn’t want to go outside.”
For his part, Bailey and his wife Vikki say their son suffers from seizures and ADHD and has been teased by the Knight family.
“My kid is sick too,” Bailey said.
“This whole thing has gotten blown out of proportion,” he added.
Both families detail a once strong friendship that has deteriorated into calls to the police and allegations of harassment.
Knight said Hope still wants to be friends with the Bailey children.
“All she wants is for them to stop being mean and be nice.”
Both parties will appear for a hearing on October 9 to determine whether criminal charges will be filed.
Hope Holcomb’s mother, Tricia Knight, says, “I couldn’t believe it. I’m saying to him, ‘are you serious? My daughter is seeing you.’”
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/adult-neighbor-accused-mocking-disabled-girl-10-article-1.1173850#ixzz28Qm5Z7Bq
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Excuse me?? Excuse ME?? Allow me to be pissed off at this for a second....
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Okay... now... why I share this? I've been bullied as well when I was little. Not only by children at school, but also by my own father. To see this sort of stupidity angers me. What kind of man teases a young girl with something she was merely born with?
Why do I take the girl's side rather than the boy's? It's not that I'm biased because of the stance these news reports take or that I think the boy's parents are lying about his ADHD and seizures (though they could very well be lying, but that's beside the point). It's the pattern in which they speak about this problem and how they deny having done anything wrong.
The man in the video, Mr. William Baily, claims to have injured himself on the job and was walking with a limp because of that. (Well, that's a pretty nasty limp. Seen a doctor 'bout that, Mr. Baily?) However, I want you to look closely at the video; Baily is walking entirely too close to the little girl Hope for this to be a casual stroll from the bus with his son. You'll also notice that the son does the limp too -- are they saying he's been injured on the job as well?
This may be me taking something a little personally, but when Baily says "My kid is sick too" it really makes me bristle. ADHD and seizures are not a sickness. They are conditions that a person is born with in which the symptoms are treatable, but not curable. In my mind, a sickness is something that is developed after conception that was not an original part of your DNA, such as influenza, colds, or even heart disease. Things like asthma, diabetes, and a history of heart disease have the potential of making one become sick, but I do not believe they are sicknesses in themselves.
The Knights may or may not be bullying the Baily's son, but I do not have any proof of that other than the word of a man who was caught on tape making fun of a little girl. So I have no choice but to regard that statement as false unless I can be proved otherwise.
I want to follow this story and see what happens. I think I'll try to dig up additional information and learn more about this issue. I'm really interested right now to see how it plays out.
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