6-year-old attacked in school bathroom

MCDONOUGH, Ga. - The Henry County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a vicious attack inside an elementary school bathroom.

Deputies said 6-year-old Lanira was attacked by a girl nearly twice her age at a bathroom inside Oakland Elementary School in McDonough at around 10 a.m. Thursday.

“You send your kids to school to get an education, they should not have to worry about getting pulled into the bathroom and getting pummeled by somebody almost twice their age,” said Lanira’s father, Jeremy Tackett.

Investigators said an older elementary student choked Lanira and submerged her head in the toilet two to three times, hitting her head on the toilet. A teacher heard the commotion and intervened.

“Older students should not be allowed to be with younger students,” said Lanira’s mother, Cheryl Tackett. “This is a problem that happens all the time in schools and we need to address it so that our younger ones are safe at school and do not have to deal with this problem.”

Lanira’s parents said she will be OK, but worry what this attack could do to their daughter emotionally.

The Tackett’s said they are pulling all five of their children out of the school. They said parents need to know what happened to their daughter to try and prevent this from happening to other students.

“People choose to ignore it, but they need to know that bullying is real and it is something that affects children,” said Jeremy Tackett.

The older elementary school girl is charged in juvenile court with false imprisonment, aggravated assault and battery.

A fundraising page has been setup for Lanira's counseling.