A 5-year-old boy accidentally knocked over a $132,000 glass sculpture at a Kansas community center last month — and the boy’s mother says the situation has led to severe “cyber bullying.”
“We are sorry it happened,” Sarah Goodman tells PEOPLE. “It’s an unfortunate accident with a big price tag.”
It all began on May 18 when the family attended a wedding reception at Tomahawk Ridge Community Center in Overland Park, according toThe Kansas City Star.
City of Overland Park
Police were called to the scene, according to theStar, and Goodman tells PEOPLE that her son allegedly suffered bruises and cuts to his face as a result of the accident. Despite reports, Overland Park city spokesman Sean Reilly says officials never sent Goodman a “bill” for the expensive sculpture.
Instead, they filed a claim with the city’s insurance company — per city policy — and the company is working with Goodman family to resolve the issue. Reilly says he expects insurance to assist in covering the damage. And Goodman tells PEOPLE she has not been asked to pay for the statue, noting that the city will likely take “financial responsibility.”
Although the situation will likely be resolved soon, Goodman says the family has faced an onslaught of “cyber bullying” as a result of her son’s mistake.
“It’s ruining me as a mom,” she tells PEOPLE. “[I’ve] been called [anonymously] and told threats on my life in the form of, ‘You should die,’ more than I can repeat or want to remember. What I care about is my son, not me. I’m fine. I just don’t want this hatred towards a 5-year-old child.”
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Goodman shared photos of several negative Facebook messages with PEOPLE, noting that people have been calling her family since news of the incident broke.
“It’s never ending. I’ve been harassed verbally over the phone at all hours,” she says. “I’m afraid the public will confront me.”
The sculpture is the work of Billy Lyons, a Kansas City artist, according to theStar. He told the publication that the piece took two years to complete and said the statue’s head and arms are damaged.
“I want to be reimbursed for the amount of time that I spent on it and for what I think it is worth,” Lyons told theStar.
source: people.com
