El Reno Girl Steps In To Save Beaten Teen With Autism

A special needs student is recovering after being beat up by a group of teenagers in El Reno. He told his family a girl named November Mullican stopped the fight.

“I was mad. I was really, really mad,” said Mullican.

She said the altercation lasted around 20 seconds, but it was a painful moment for her to watch.

Mullican said it started as a verbal argument. The student with autism used a racial slur against another student, which led into a physical altercation.

“He knew he was going to go out there and fight, but he did not know that he was going to get kicked and jumped by other people,” she said.

Nine seconds of the fight was captured on the video application, Snapchat. It showed the initial punch by a teenager. The boy with autism immediately falls to the ground and curls up. More students jump in and continue kicking and punching him.

Mullican said something in her gut prompted her to step in. She said she understands autistic people because her own brother has autism.

“It really broke my heart,” said Mullican.

While the boy was being kicked, Mullican walked in and told them to back away. She said she was pushed in the process, but not injured. She describes dozens of other kids standing around watching, but not doing anything about it.

“They should not have done that,” said Mullican. “They should know better, that he is not all there.”

While she understands using racial slurs are wrong, she also believes the teen with disabilities had no way of defending himself.

The El Reno Police Department confirms that a 13 and 14-year-old will be charged with assault and battery.

The El Reno Public Schools superintendent said they are taking the situation very seriously and conducting an investigation alongside police. They have positively identified three of the teenagers, two of which are their students. Two other kids in the video have not been identified yet.