Girl, 14, charged with attempted murder after allegedly setting classmate on fire at Sask. high school

WARNING: this story contains distressing details.

The 14-year-old girl accused of seriously injuring a 15-year-old classmate by lighting her on fire at Evan Hardy Collegiate in Saskatoon has been charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault and arson.

The accused, who cannot be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, wept throughout her brief appearance in Saskatoon provincial court on Friday morning. Judge Doug Agnew ordered she attend in person so he could see the teen, who wore a hoodie, before remanding her into custody until her next appearance on Sept. 11.

Several family members of the accused were also present in court. They remained quiet during the brief proceedings and declined to speak with CBC News.

The victim was rushed to hospital after a noon-hour assault on Thursday and is believed to be in serious condition, the Saskatoon Police Service (SPS) said in a news release Friday. SPS said they are continuing to investigate.

On Friday, signs in support of the victim and the Evan Hardy community, as well as dozens of bouquets of flowers, were placed outside the high school.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority declined to comment on the conditions of the student or the teacher in an email to CBC News on Friday, citing patient and family confidentiality.

The 15-year-old victim’s aunt wept throughout Friday’s court proceedings as she sat beside the victim’s older cousin, who attends a different high school in the city. Both of the victim’s relatives also declined to speak with CBC News.

Students at Evan Hardy had been sent home after the attack and classes on Friday were cancelled, though the school was open to provide counselling services to students and staff. Principal Karen Peterson said in a letter to families Friday those services will continue on Monday and classes will resume on Tuesday.

Saskatoon Public Schools director of education Shane Skjerven said Friday the past 24 hours had been extremely difficult for the school and thanked emergency services that responded to the incident. 

“We recognize the seriousness of this incident and understand the strong emotions it has stirred throughout the entire school community and our community,” he told reporters Friday. “The safety and well-being of our students, staff and families remain our top priority.”

Student witnesses ‘scared and shocked’

Grade 9 student Sophie Hubbard said she and her friend Lexxi Sparvier were leaving social studies class on Thursday when the incident occurred. Hubbard said she saw a girl pour liquid from a black container onto another girl and lift a hand toward the other girl’s head, then saw the victim on fire in the hallway. Neither student saw what was used to ignite the fire.

“I just paused for five seconds and then I yelled, ‘Fire!’ and ran out with Sophie,” Sparvier told reporters at the school yard on Friday. “I’m still shaking a little.”

Teachers were yelling for the victim to roll on the ground to help extinguish the fire and used fire extinguishers as the flames spread to part of a nearby wall, the two students said. The fire alarm went off as well, they added.

“I didn’t believe it was real,” Hubbard said.

Sparvier said as soon as she was outside she dug around in her pocket for her phone and dialed 911.

“Before they even spoke I said, ‘Come to Evan Hardy,'” she said.

The two students said the accused ran away after the incident and teachers chased after her. They say they later saw police escort the accused out of the school with a towel on her head, handcuff her against a police vehicle, and she appeared to be resisting as police tried to place her inside the car.

Sparvier’s mother, Cassie Roberts, said her daughter is normally shy and introverted, so she’s “so proud” to hear how Sparvier reacted and helped so quickly. 

“I told her what she’s done is absolutely huge and it’s courageous,” Roberts said. “She kept her composure.… She will not break under pressure and knew exactly what to do.”

Roberts said the priority now is helping her daughter deal with the trauma caused by the incident.

Hubbard and Sparvier said they did not know the victim or the accused, and the incident has left them “scared and shocked.”

Sparvier said she does not yet know when she will feel safe returning to school. Both she and Hubbard expressed their concern for the victim.

“She didn’t deserve that,” Hubbard said.

Students’ senses of safety likely shaken: psychiatrist

Saskatoon-based child psychiatrist Dr. Sara Dungavell says incidents like this can shake how safe students feel at school and in the world, but the impacts could be much more harmful for youth who have experienced trauma at home or who have had negative experiences at school.

“This just reinforces that idea that school is not a safe place and so for them it can be really frightening,” she told CBC’s Saskatoon Morning Friday. “It can rob some of them of the only place that they felt was safe and they’re going to need extra support.”

She advised parents and guardians to check-in with their teens and offer a space for them to process their feelings. That could mean offering a listening ear, just spending time together, or arranging time with friends or another trusted adult.

“A lot of teenagers don’t want to talk things through with their parents, but they do want to know that they’re loved and that their emotional safety is important,” said Dungavell, noting that parents should watch their teens for signs of distress lasting more than a few weeks.

Parents should also be mindful of their own feelings, as the incident could prompt grief over the world not being a safe place they want for their children, she said.

“We do trust schools to keep our children safe. It’s going to hit us the same as it it can hit our kids,” Dungavell said.

Britainy Robinson Zapshalla says her son had just started Grade 9 at Evan Hardy and while it has “rattled” his transition to high school, she is thankful he did not witness the attack.

She said she has tried to focus on all the helpers who responded to the situation as her son asks new questions, and the school’s response and offers of counselling as resources have helped reassure her about his return to class.

“I feel like it might be even more safe, if that makes sense, because people will be looking for signs and paying more attention to the kids and how they’re doing emotionally,” Robinson Zapshalla, who used to be a reporter for CBC News, told Blue Sky on Friday. “That maybe gives me a little bit of hope.”

‘Challenging time’

Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation (STF) president Samantha Becotte said it is a “challenging time” for all educators in the province.

“It is really sad to see such horrific incidents happening in our schools, and we’re just wishing them well and hoping that that everyone recovers and everyone impacted is receiving the support that they need,” she said in an interview Friday.

Becotte declined to comment on how the individual teachers involved are doing due to privacy, and said it was too early to know whether something could have been done differently to prevent the incident.

“Ultimately, we should all be coming to schools in safe environments and these incidents should be prevented,” she said.

Anyone in need of mental health supports can call 306-655-7777 in Saskatoon or the HealthLine at 811.