Teen charged in La Follette beating held on signature bond
MADISON, Wis. — A 17-year-old has been charged with battery in connection with a fight at a Madison high school that left a 15-year-old student with serious injuries.
Tayshon Ross, 17, is charged with one count of substantial battery – intended bodily harm for his alleged involvement in a fight at La Follette High School in mid-January, according to online court records.
During an interview at the hospital after the fight, the victim in the incident told police he was scared during the fight, especially because there were a lot of students involved. A criminal complaint filed against Ross claims six students were involved in the attack.
The complaint also detailed the victim’s injuries which included swollen, discolored gums and a tooth that appeared to have been pushed up into his gums.
Authorities alleged the fight happened shortly after Ross and other students at the school had been talking and joking about the victim, prompting him to confront Ross and the others. A witness later told police that the victim thought the other students were talking about him when they actually weren’t.
According to the complaint, video footage from the school’s security system showed “multiple students” standing in a common area near the school’s auditorium door. The victim can then be seen entering the area and quickly removing a sweatshirt he was wearing. Another student is then seen taking off his backpack while several others follow the victim, who was arguing with another student.
The student then tried to punch the victim, who ducked the punch. Shortly after, another student is reportedly seen punching the victim in the face, on the right side of his jaw. The complaint claims the victim tried to move away from the other students who continued to follow him. At that point, Ross reportedly caught up with the victim from behind and punched him in the face.
Ross reportedly tried to hit the victim again but missed. Other students continued to try hitting the victim, who eventually escaped around a corner. School administrators then intervened and stopped the fight.
According to the complaint, Ross can be seen on camera inspecting his hand after the fight as if looking at an injury he got from punching the victim. During an interview with a witness later on, the witness told police she saw Ross and one other student hit the victim.
Ross made his initial appearance in court Friday afternoon. A court commissioner ordered Ross have no contact with the victim as a condition of his signature bond. His next court appearance is a status conference scheduled for April 11.
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