LAPD arrests juvenile after deadly alleged bullying incident at Reseda charter school

Los Angeles detectives arrested a juvenile in an alleged school bullying incident that left a 12-year-old girl dead after she was struck in the head with a metal water bottle.

The Los Angeles Police Department did not provide many details about the person they arrested. They only stated that the person was a minor arrested for murder.

"This arrest is an important step toward accountability, but it does not change the bigger truth: this tragedy was entirely preventable," attorney Robert Glassman wrote in a statement.

Glassman represents the family of Khimberly Zavaleta Chuquipa, the 12-year-old who died. Her family said their daughter was attacked on Feb. 17 at Reseda Charter High School. Days after she was struck in the head with a metal bottle, Khimberly was rushed to the hospital, where doctors discovered severe bleeding in her brain. She died despite multiple emergency surgeries and life support.

"I feel very bad, destroyed," her mother, Elma Chuquipa, said in Spanish in February. "It's not easy to lose a child. It's not easy to see your child dying in a bed."

Following Khimberly Zavaleta Chuquipa's death, the young girl's family and her friends demanded justice, calling for the student as well as any teachers or staff who failed to intervene to be held accountable. 

"What is happening? There are many schools, and I am not the only mother fighting for justice for her child," Chuquipa said in Spanish. "I know the principal and teachers are also parents, and no one would want to lose a child in this way."

In a statement, a Los Angeles Unified School District spokesperson said the incident "deeply saddened" administrators.

"Our thoughts and condolences are with the student's family, friends, and the entire school community," the spokesperson said in February. "The District takes the safety and well-being of our students very seriously. We are currently cooperating with law enforcement in connection with this incident." 

Glassman and the family filed legal action against LAUSD in mid-March. 

This was not an isolated incident—it was the foreseeable result of repeated bullying and a failure to protect these children," Glassman said in a statement. "One child is gone, and a family is shattered. The focus must now be on ensuring this never happens again."