GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) — A woman has been charged after allegedly assaulting a child in Greensboro.
According to Greensboro Police Department, on Thursday just after 2:30 p.m., they were called to Sedgefield Garden Apartments about an assault.
When they got to the apartments, they spoke with two juvenile victims and their parents.
As they investigated, they determined that an assault had occurred and obtained warrants for the arrest of 62-year-old Kimberly Jennings.
She was arrested within hours of the incident and charged with two counts of assault on a child under 12.
The arrest was made after a video went viral. It showed Jennings dumping soda and hitting a boy with the bottle at a Greensboro apartment complex near the pool.
The boy, his family and dozens of supporters have been out at the Sedgefield Gardens apartment complex throughout the day on Friday. The family and people from all over the community want to get their message across: this type of behavior will not be tolerated.
“This is child abuse,” said Joella Lee, the mother of the boy seen in the video.
Lee admits she was not with her 11-year-old son on Wednesday afternoon when the incident happened.
“You don’t need to put your hands on nobody’s child at all. It isn’t your responsibility,” said Robert Eury, the boy’s father.
Eury was also not there at the time. Later, both of them were disturbed to see the video. The couple and their kids do not live at the Sedgefield Gardens apartments but live close by.
There are no trespassing signs at the apartments as well as a sign saying no unattended children at the pool. According to the boy, Jennings, who is the property manager, told the kids to leave and then pulled his little sister’s hair.
He responded by throwing a bottle at her. That’s when Jennings reportedly dumped the soda and hit him with the bottle.
The parents say they understand Jennings was just trying to get the kids to leave the pool, but the way it happened is beyond their understanding.
“There is a different way to go about it,” Eury said.
In support of the family, the Gate City Coalition organized a gathering at the apartments on Friday.
“It is a child, and the thing is you don’t want to see people hurting children. You wouldn’t want people doing that to your child,” said John Awolowo, from the Gate City Coalition.
“Violence is not going to be accepted in any form,” said Ingram Bell, from the Gate City Coalition.
Dozens of people showed up, holding signs that said “stop the violence” and “end racism.”
“It’s good. The outpouring of support is just great. It makes you feel like people care,” Lee said.
The viral video is starting conversations in North Carolina.
“It’s like everybody has got each other’s back for these kids, and that is the way it is supposed to be,” Eury said.
According to her LinkedIn profile, Jennings is the property manager at the Sedgefield Gardens apartments. We have reached out to the owner several times for comment, but they have not responded to our requests.
