Special Needs Child, 10, Set on Fire by Playmates in Texas

A young boy in Kerrville, Texas, is recovering from burns he allegedly received at the hands of his playmate-tormentors. Ten-year-old Kayden Culp suffered burns over 20 percent of his body, including on his chest and neck, when three boys (ages 9, 10, and 11) set him on fire with gasoline.

Before being placed in a medically induced coma for his injuries, Kayden told his mother, Tristyn Hatchett, that one of the boys had intentionally hurt him saying, “He hurt me. He set me on fire. He needs to go to jail.”

Hatchett said that one of the boy’s relatives called her the day of the incident and confirmed that it was indeed an intentional act and that the boys were talking about it at school.

“There’s no reason they should not already be incarcerated. The other boys who were there have been telling kids at school that it was not an accident, that it was intentional,” Hatchett said.

The authorities aren’t so sure that this act was intentional.

Police Chief David Knight said, “We have no indication that there was any premeditation involved to injure this child.” Knight claims the boys, who were “friendly” with one another, started a small fire in the shed using gas in a canister to make the fire bigger. When the accused tried to make the fire bigger, it caught the canister on fire. The boy tried to discard it, hitting Kayden in the process, lighting him on fire.

The Hatchett family disagrees, saying that Kayden was only friends with one of the boys and had a “past” with one of the others. They claim that he has been bullied in the past and his family worried about letting him play with other children.

“He wore a hearing aid, talked with a lisp…I mean, he was challenged from the get-go,” said Tanya Kasper, Kayden’s aunt.

“And for him to face this new challenge, it’s going to be overwhelming.”

The family is standing by Kayden’s side as he recovers:

https://www.facebook.com/Tristyn3109/posts/1122411177872816

The investigation is ongoing.

Kayden’s family has set up a fund on YouCaring and is accepting donations to cover his growing medical bills.

Here’s the most recent update:

https://www.facebook.com/Tristyn3109/posts/1123491254431475