School Stabbing Victim's Lawsuit Against NRHS Allowed To Proceed

NEW ROCHELLE, NY — A Westchester County judge has ruled that a lawsuit related to the 2018 stabbing of a New Rochelle High School student during his Spanish class should move forward.

Judge Terry Jane Ruderman ruled against the City School District of New Rochelle’s motion to dismiss this case based on a lack of evidence of negligence on the school’s part.

The judge agreed that the plaintiffs’ lawyers did not prove that school officials contributed to the victim's injuries by waiting too long to call 911, issuing a summary judgment in favor of the school in that matter. Ruderman ruled, however, that there was enough evidence to hear allegations that the school failed to adequately protect the student from his knife-wielding attacker, who had a long history of disciplinary infractions, including violent incidents.

SEE ALSO: New Rochelle Teen Sentenced in High School Stabbing

Lawyers for the stabbing victim had argued that the school did not initially call 911 and instead attempted to dress the injured student’s wounds in the school infirmary.

The lawsuit stems from a January, 2018 incident in which then 15-year-old Bryan Stamps stabbed another student inside the New Rochelle High School building. Stamps was convicted in connection with the stabbing in 2019. The victim was rushed to a nearby hospital trauma unit where he underwent emergency surgery and was treated for serious injuries.

The stabbing in 2018 was not the first time Stamps had a brush with violence. He previously stabbed a student outside Isaac E. Young Middle School during a fight when he was just 13-years-old. Just days prior to attacking his classmate in 2018, he was the victim of an assault in which a fellow student was stabbed in the hand at a pizzeria near the school campus.

School district lawyers argued, in part, that because the prior violent incidents by Stamps did not involve the stabbing victim, the school could not have predicted the classroom assault. Citing precedent, attorneys for the school contended that "even the most intense supervision could not have prevented” the sudden attack. The judge rejected both arguments.

In issuing the ruling to allow the case to proceed, Judge Ruderman ordered both sides to begin renewed settlement talks.

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