A lawsuit filed last week is alleging the Pike County School District was negligent in preventing the bullying of a Pike County Central High School student, and she was severely injured as a result.

Court documents filed by Pikeville Attorney Glenn Martin Hammond allege that in October, a student at Pike Central was assaulted by a fellow student in an act of bullying that the school district failed to prevent. Court documents said the alleged victim was grabbed from behind by the hair and was beaten unconscious, and woke up in a pool of blood. The incident, court documents said, left the student with a brain injury.

The lawsuit also alleges that two other students subjected the alleged victim to verbal abuse which directly led to the physical assault. The suit claims that Pike County Schools personnel were aware of the history of bullying that existed between the alleged victim and those accused of carrying out the acts of bullying alleged in the filing.

The lawsuit names 13 defendants, including, among others, Pike County Schools Superintendent Reed Adkins; the member of the Pike County Board of Education, including the late Kenneth Billiter; several Pike Central staff and administrators; and the three students who allegedly bullied the alleged victim. According to court documents, the lawsuit, which was filed last Thursday, seeks a judgement against the defendants for medical expenses, as well as punitive damages.

At this time, there are no hearings scheduled in the lawsuit; and the Pike County School District and the other defendants have not yet filed a response.