Police in Oklahoma are investigating the death of a nonbinary teen who collapsed the day after a physical altercation with other students in their high-school bathroom. Nex Benedict’s family has said the 16-year-old was relentlessly bullied due to their gender identity and are asking officials “to determine why this happened, to hold those responsible to account, and to ensure it never happens again.” Nex’s death has drawn national attention as Oklahoma lawmakers continue to attack LGBTQ+ rights and pass some of the harshest anti-trans laws in the nation. Here’s everything we know about the case.
Who was Nex Benedict?
Nex was a sophomore at Owasso High School, which is located in a suburb northeast of Tulsa. The teen lived with their biological grandmother Sue Benedict and her husband, Walter, who raised Nex since they were an infant and formally adopted them a few years ago. Nex identified as nonbinary and used they/them pronouns, the family said. “Nex did not see themselves as male or female,” Benedict told the Independent. “Nex saw themselves right down the middle. I was still learning about it; Nex was teaching me that.”
The family said Nex was a “great kid” and a straight-A student who loved reading, cooking, playing video games such as Minecraft, and their cat, Zeus. Benedict toldthe Independent that Nex was patient with their adopted parents whenever they used an incorrect pronoun or mistakenly called them by their birth name. “I was so proud of Nex,” she said. “They were going someplace; they were so free.”
Though some media reports indicated that Nex was a citizen of Cherokee Nation, principal chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. issued a statement saying that their database showed Nex lived within the reservation but was not a tribe member.
What happened with this fight at school?
According to school administrators, Nex was in the girls’ bathroom with another transgender student on February 7 when they got into a physical altercation with three other students. The fight reportedly lasted about two minutes before classmates and a staff member broke it up. Nex and the other students were escorted to the assistant principal’s and nurse’s offices, where their statements were taken. Police said the school nurse determined that no one involved in the fight needed an ambulance; however, the nurse still recommended that Nex be taken to a medical facility for further examination.
Neither the school administration nor the police have said what caused the fight. But Nex’s family members say that the altercation was due to the ongoing bullying Nex experienced over their gender identity. Benedict first learned that Nex was being bullied in early 2023, she told the Independent. When she arrived to pick up Nex after the fight, she said the teen was badly beaten — there were bruises across their face and scratches on the back of their head. She was furious that the school had not contacted an ambulance or the police, and she said administrators told her Nex was suspended for two weeks. Benedict then took Nex to Bailey Medical Center in Owasso. There, the teen underwent an MRI, their cousin Victoria “Tori” Broene told the Washington Post. Benedict also contacted police to report the fight while at the medical center; police said that was the first time they were notified of any altercation.
In messages obtained by local outlet Fox23, Nex told a family member: “I got jumped at school 3 on 1 had to go to the ER.” When asked if they were doing okay, the teen replied that they had some “scrapes and bruises,” and “if I’m dizzy or nauseous in the morning I might have a concussion.” Nex added that the fight happened because “they had been bullying me and my friends and I got tired of it so I poured some water on them and all 3 came after me.”
How did Nex die?
Benedict told the Independent that Nex was discharged from the medical center on the day of the fight, and in the evening went to bed with a sore head. The next afternoon, Nex collapsed in the family living room. Benedict called an ambulance and by the time emergency personnel arrived at the house, Nex had stopped breathing. They were rushed to St. Francis Pediatric Emergency Room, where medical staff declared them dead. Their funeral was held on February 15.
No cause of death has been released so far. Police said on February 21 that a preliminary autopsy showed Nex did not die as a result of trauma. “At this time, any further comments on the cause of death are currently pending until toxicology results and other ancillary testing results are received,” the department said in a statement. “The official autopsy report will be available at a later date.”
How has the school district responded?
Owasso Public Schools has declined to share further information about the case, citing the police investigation and federal privacy laws. “The loss of a student, a member of the Ram Family and the Owasso community, is devastating,” a spokesperson said in a statement to the Cut. “We recognize the impact that this event has had on the entire school community and it is our priority to foster an environment where everyone feels heard, supported, and safe.”
What attacks are the LGBTQ+ community facing in Oklahoma right now?
Nex’s death comes after Oklahoma lawmakers targeted transgender and nonbinary people in recent years with several measures, including banning children from receiving gender-affirming medical care, prohibiting trans minors from using the school bathroom that corresponds to their gender identity, prohibiting the use of nonbinary gender markers on birth certificates, and blocking trans girls and women from playing on female sports teams. More than 50 bills targeting the LGBTQ+ community are under consideration this legislative session alone, including a ban on gender-affirming care for adults, a measure blocking school staff from using a student’s preferred pronouns, and a bill prohibiting Oklahomans from amending their birth certificate to reflect their gender identity.
Last year, Republican governor Kevin Stitt also signed an executive order that defines an individual’s sex as the “biological sex” at birth. Superintendent Ryan Walters, who oversees the state’s public schools, has also been a vocal critic of transgender rights. He recently appointed Chaya Raichik — a far-right influencer who runs the social media account Libs of TikTok, which previously targeted a teacher at Nex’s school — to a state library advisory board.
What’s next in the case?
Police say the investigation is ongoing, and the Post reported officials are awaiting the toxicology and autopsy reports before deciding to refer the case to the Tulsa County district attorney’s office. Authorities also said they have reviewed and plan to release video captured by hallway cameras that show Nex before and after the fight, NBC News reported.
Meanwhile, Nex’s family has retained the services of a law firm in Tulsa. The attorneys released a statement on February 21 saying that “the family is independently interviewing witnesses and collecting all available evidence.”
A family friend also established a GoFundMe to help cover funeral expenses. The fundraiser is under Nex’s deadname, which the family apologized for. “We are sorry for not using their name correctly and as parents we were still learning the correct forms,” an update reads. “Please do not judge us as Nex was judged, please do not bully us for our ignorance on the subject. Nex gave us that respect and we are sorry in our grief that we overlooked them.” The donations have surpassed $100,000, and the family says that most of it “will go to other children dealing with the right to be who they feel they are, in Nex Benedict’s name.”
Andrea González-Ramírez , 2024-02-22 23:05:04
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