OKEECHOBEE, Fla. — An Okeechobee family is demanding accountability from the school district after they say their 14-year-old daughter, in a desperate attempt to escape relentless bullying, jumped from a school bus window.
The family says that after the girl returned home, she attempted to take her own life and was hospitalized for two days in the ICU.
This family is now sharing their daughter's harrowing story to raise awareness and push for systemic changes to how bullying is handled.
Their public plea and a planned protest aim to ensure that no other child has to endure what they say their daughter has gone through.
A desperate escape captured on video
The family of 14-year-old Estrella Ventura Meras, a seventh-grader at the Okeechobee Achievement Academy, says her bubbly personality has faded over the last month due to what they describe as escalating bullying by other girls at her school.
The situation came to a head in an incident captured in a viral social media video, which WPTV is not showing. The video shows Estrella jumping from the bus window in the school parking lot and running away.
"She just feared for her life," said Vanessa Sanchez, a family member. "She didn't trust the bus driver to do anything. She didn't trust going out the front or back door, so she jumped out the bus window."
'I'm tired of this'
What the video doesn't show is what happened next. The family says when Estrella arrived home, she took a handful of medication and left a note saying, "I'm tired of this," in a suicide attempt. Her family found her in time to get her life-saving medical help. She is now recovering in a different hospital.
"Her mental state over the past month, has been degraded," Sanchez said.
A call for accountability
The Okeechobee County School District released a statement acknowledging the incident, saying in part, "Every student deserves to feel safe, and we take reports of bullying seriously."
The district confirmed it is investigating but stated that federal law limits its ability to comment on individual students.
Estrella's family says this was not the first time they reported the bullying to the school and that they will not be sending her back. They are now focused on demanding change.
"I want them to change their bullying policies, and take it more serious," Sanchez said.
The family and other concerned parents are planning a peaceful protest outside the school board building on Oct. 5, hoping their daughter's story will be a catalyst for action.
"To the parents, talk to their children about bullying," said Estela Meras, another family member. "It needs to be stopped. It's not okay."
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. You can also connect with the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741. For local resources in our area, you can also dial 211.
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