New Jersey Senators Patrick Diegnan (D-Middlesex) and Joe Pennachio (R-Morris) have found initial success with the passing of a bill in the Senate Education Committee to further curb what some are calling an epidemic of bullying among students in the Garden State.
“Mallory’s Law,” named after 12-year-old Mallory Grossman, who committed suicide in 2017 after being bullied for an extensive period, is a reinforcement of the 2010 “Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights,” enacted after cyber harassment led to the death of Rutgers freshman Tyler Clementi in 2010.
“Suicide is the second leading cause of death for children between the ages of 10 and 14, a figure partially attributable to cyberbullying,” Diegnan said, the New Jersey Globe reported. “Although New Jersey’s ‘Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights’ is considered to be one of the toughest anti-bullying laws in the country, students have continued to be victimized, especially on social media, to the point of suicide. Hopefully, this bill will equip schools with the tools to combat this epidemic.”
“School bullying is killing our children,” Pennacchio said. “I cannot fathom the pain Mallory’s family suffers through every day. Bullying is preventable and addressable, so we shouldn’t have to just tolerate or accept it. ‘Mallory’s Law’ is a recognition that stopping the culture of bullying requires a multi-faceted approach that involves students, parents, teachers, and school administrators.”
School bullying is killing our children. I cannot fathom the pain Mallory’s family suffers through.
Mallory’s Law is recognition that stopping the culture of bullying requires an approach that involves students, parents, teachers, & school administrators.https://t.co/uFRCPa7gmq
— Sen. Joe Pennacchio (@joepennacchio) June 17, 2019
After Mallory’s tragic death, her parents started a national movement to protect children and inform parents about the devastating effects of bullying, “Mallory’s Army,” which was followed by the bipartisan effort named in honor of Mallory introduced in February 2019.
“We have to do more to protect our kids when bullies can harass them at any time of the day via apps Snapchat and Instagram, or even when they’re playing video games like Fortnite,” Pennacchio added. “’Mallory’s Law’ will ensure the bully, parents, and the school are made well aware of any incidents, and that proper disciplinary actions are taken before we lose more young lives.”
In cases of intentional or gross disregard in supervising a child who has engaged in harassment or bullying, the new bill would ensure parents and guardians would be held civilly liable.
In addition, Mallory’s Law (S-3433) (pdf) would mandate reporting of the bullying to school officials and resource officers if available.
The new legislation would increase the penalty for skipping out on court-ordered cyber-bullying classes for parents of children under 16 to $100 for the first offense and $500 for each subsequent instance. Under the current regulation, those fines are set at $25 for the first offense and $100 for each consecutive missed session.
In case of a third incident of bullying, it would also require that school superintendents and parents of students involved in an incident be notified immediately.
“Mallory’s family and I worked closely together to create this legislation,” Pennacchio said, according to the New Jersey Globe. “The State of New Jersey must take every appropriate action to reduce bullying by increasing the strength and transparency of the reporting process. Enacting ‘Mallory’s Law’ will bring us one step closer to ensuring bullying will not be tolerated in any school in the Garden State.”
After passing through the Senate Education Committee, the bill will still need to be voted on by the full Senate and the Assembly before it will be delivered to governor Phil Murphy’s desk.
