A video showing a 17-year-old Huntington Beach High School junior stopping what he says was a bully from attacking a visually impaired boy has as gone viral.
Cody Pines said Thursday that he jumped in and knocked the suspect to the ground to protect his friend who he has known since sixth grade.
“I felt like he was getting really hurt and I felt like it was my obligation to go up there and help him,” Cody told Times Community News. “That was my only reaction, to be honest. I didn’t mean to hurt the [suspect] intentionally, but I just wanted to make sure my friend was OK.”
In the video below, you can see a boy wearing a beanie punching another boy who police said “has a degree of visual impairment.” Then, seconds later, Cody knocks the boy wearing the beanie to the ground:
Nothing but respect to the kid who jumped in. http://t.co/WKG2gHI7jZ
— Ray Lopez (@Powerful) September 24, 2015
Cody was kicked off the football team for what he did, but now an online petition has received over 29,000 signatures from supporters to get him back on the field.
The LA Times reports that the two boys involved in the initial altercation have a “history of not getting along” and that police claim they had an argument before the punch was thrown. Police also say that the student’s disability does not appear to have been a factor in the incident.
The bully was arrested after the fight, then released to his parents. Police say they have no plans to arrest Cody.
“Huntington Beach High School firmly believes that all students are afforded an opportunity to learn in a safe and secure environment,” the Huntington Beach Union High School District said in a statement Thursday. “Because of this, safety is the highest priority. Huntington Beach High School has a very strong anti-bullying code of conduct and will not condone this type of behavior from any student.”
