11-year-old Perth Amboy stabbing victim released from hospital; says school isn’t safe

Smailyn Jimenez suffered serious injuries to his abdomen, and one of the veins to his heart was damaged when he was allegedly stabbed by another 11-year-old boy.

News 12 Staff

Mar 2, 2023, 3:22 AM

Updated 640 days ago

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An 11-year-old Perth Amboy boy allegedly stabbed by a classmate is out of the hospital and on the mend.
Smailyn Jimenez suffered serious injuries to his abdomen, and one of the veins to his heart was damaged. The fifth grader says that things need to change at his middle school for students to feel safe.
He says that while he was hospitalized at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, all he wanted to do was to be with his family. He says that he was very scared during those six days in the hospital.
But now Jimenez is home with his family and his dog.
He says the incident all started in the hallways of Samuel E. Shull Middle School. He says he was walking out of gym class with one of his friends, who was singing a song in Spanish. He says that the 11-year-old boy accused of attacking him apparently did not like the song his friend was singing.
Jimenez says that the sixth grader threatened his friend and said, “Watch what is going to happen when we get out of school.”
Jimenez says that he has seen this boy in school before, but did not know him well and that he has never had any interaction with him before the attack.
Jimenez says that the boy waited for him a couple of blocks away from school, very close to his house. He says the sixth grader asked him why his friend was singing. They both kept walking and talking. He says it was a normal conversation until they got to a secluded area.
He says this is when the boy pulled out a knife. Jimenez says that he told the boy he would get on his knees, but to please not hurt him.
Jimenez says that he believes that the boy who allegedly stabbed him was trying to send a message to his friend, maybe because he couldn’t find the friend at that moment.
Jimenez says he thinks the school needs more security. He says the bathrooms at his school are very dangerous and that he doesn’t want any other kid to get hurt the way he did. But it is important to note that the attack did not happen on school grounds.
He says he would go back to the middle school if his attacker is not allowed back and if changes do happen, because that school is the closest to his house.
Jimenez’s father Juan Jimenez says that he will be asking for his son to be able to take online classes or to be home schooled.
Juan Jimenez says that he is thankful for the woman who tried to him his son and flagged down a nearby ambulance – likely saving his life.
The Perth Amboy Board of Education will vote at its March 9 meeting on adding metal detectors, hiring more security guards and checking backpacks at the city’s schools.
Jimenez’s alleged attacker was charged with juvenile delinquency due to his age. He is scheduled for a hearing on March 15.
News 12 has reached out to the school district and the Perth Amboy Mayor's Office for an interview, but have not heard back.