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If you or someone you know is considering suicide or is in crisis, contact the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988.
Oklahoma prosecutors say they will not file charges in Nex Benedict's death.
Nex was a 16-year-old non-binary student whose death last month was ruled a suicide. They were injured during an argument with their high school classmates the day before.
Nex, who used both he/him and they/them pronouns, was the target of harassment in the months leading up to his death because of his gender identity, according to his family.
Member station KOSU reported that harassing someone to attempt or complete suicide is a felony in Oklahoma. But Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler said the fight was not one-sided and there was not enough evidence to file charges.
“Based on the Owasso Police Department’s investigation, I agree with the assessment that charging the juvenile is not warranted,” Kunzweiler said in a news release Thursday. “Based on all of the evidence collected, this was a case of mutual fighting. There is no reasonable belief that the State of Oklahoma will be able to meet its burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt if the charges are prosecuted.”
Lawyers for Nex's family said Nex's injuries in the fight were significant even if it was ruled a suicide, KOSU reported.
Sarah Kate Ellis, president of the Gay and Lesbian Coalition Against Defamation, told KOSU on Thursday that Kunzweiler, Owasso police, the school district and the coroner's office have “failed Nex Benedict and all of us.”
The district said it had provided counselors for students and that “any suggestion that the district ignored disciplinary action against those involved is simply untrue.” It called Nex's death devastating. After-hours calls to that area were not immediately returned.
According to body camera footage, Nex told police that while he was in the hospital for injuries suffered during the fight, he hit the girls in a high school bathroom and poured water on them for laughing. The group then began beating Nex to the ground until he “passed out.”
The next day, Nex was pronounced dead. The medical examiner's office determined they died after taking a lethal combination of prescription and over-the-counter drugs. The full autopsy report has not yet been released.
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Owasso police found a brief note from Nex that “appeared to be related to suicide,” which was an important part of the investigation, the district attorney said. Kunweiler said the note, which did not mention fights or difficulties at school, was a “personal matter” for the Nex family.
Nex's case sparked protests from LGBTQ+ supporters and calls for changes to bullying laws.
As NPR previously reported, suicide rates for transgender youth are disproportionately higher than for cisgender youth. Transgender youth report that the wave of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation across the country is a major reason for the negative impact on their mental health.