*Just look at that face. Its hard to believe anyone would want to harm him; even a bunch of knuckleheads like the boys who decided to hang him. Thank goodness he can even hold his head up and smile today. But his family knows its going to be a long, hard road to recovery; even after the scars on his neck from the rope fade.
The 8-year-old boys mom, 28-year-old Cassandra Merlin, put on a brave face for a short interview with the Daily News.
?He?s doing all right,? she said of her injured son. ?He?s getting better every day. He’s back in school. I’m not sure what the future holds.”
Lorrie Slattery, the boys’ grandmother, didn’t hold back about her feelings on the incident. You can tell it still stings (it has only been two weeks).
?It is so emotionally upsetting to me. He?s 8 years old. I am very concerned for Quincy. I don’t think he quite realizes he was a target,? Slattery told the publication.
According to Quincy’s mom, the teens who did the cruel act convinced the child to put the rope around his neck by putting it around theirs first. Once he followed suit, they kicked the picnic table from under him — causing him to hang.
?He doesn’t want to believe that these kids wanted to hurt him,? Slattery said. ?He needs to be liked. He?s a pleaser.?
Slattery said her daughter Cassandra was ?stressed out? and staying with her kids at a temporary location.
?She needs to be safe,? Slattery, 52, said.
Slattery told the Daily News her 11-year-old granddaughter witnessed the incident and was traumatized too.
The young girl reportedly saw her brother kick his feet, grab at his neck and turn purple before he dropped to the ground.
The family wants to leave the area and authorized a GoFundMe page which, by Saturday, had collected nearly $43,000 of a $55,000 goal. The funds will be used for counseling, relocation and other costs. They also want to get intensive therapy for Quincy.
Read more on this heartbreaking story here.
