Violent Assault of Student by NYC Football Coach Sparks Outrage and Lawsuits

Brutal Attack in School Stairwell

Shayson Willock, a 14-year-old high school foot­ball play­er, was alleged­ly attacked by his coach, Nicholas Nugent, in a stair­well at James Madi­son High School in Brooklyn.

The coach report­ed­ly slammed Willock­’s head against a wall mul­ti­ple times, caus­ing the stu­dent to lose con­scious­ness and require six sta­ples in his skull.

Mother Seeks Justice, Claims Failure by Officials

Willock­’s moth­er, Deslyn, has filed a $2.5 mil­lion law­suit against Nugent, the city, and the Depart­ment of Edu­ca­tion, accus­ing them of fail­ing to pro­tect her son. She said she no longer trusts the teach­ers, coach­es, or the jus­tice sys­tem, as she felt the inci­dent was large­ly swept under the rug until she took it upon her­self to report it to the police.

Alleged Cover-Up by School Administration

Accord­ing to the fam­i­ly, when Willock­’s moth­er arrived at the school, admin­is­tra­tors claimed her son had sim­ply “fall­en back” dur­ing an argu­ment with the coach, even as she could hear her son scream­ing that he had been hurt. The school did not imme­di­ate­ly report the inci­dent to the authorities.

Lasting Physical and Emotional Trauma

The assault left Willock with a con­cus­sion and poten­tial brain con­tu­sion, as well as dam­age to his spine. He has not played foot­ball since the inci­dent and says he no longer has the desire to do so, fear­ing it could hap­pen again. The fam­i­ly’s lawyer states the teenag­er has a “com­pro­mised cer­vi­cal region with mul­ti­ple herniations.”

Calls for Accountability and Reform

Willock­’s moth­er is seek­ing jus­tice for the dev­as­tat­ing harm done to her son, as well as answers about why the school admin­is­tra­tion seem­ing­ly failed to prop­er­ly address and report the alleged assault. The case high­lights the need for stronger account­abil­i­ty and pro­tec­tive mea­sures for stu­dent-ath­letes in the pub­lic school system.