Family says Lynn bullies put boy in hospital

LYNN-An 11-year-old Lynn boy remains in intensive care at a Boston Hospital following what his family says was a malicious act of bullying at the Brickett Elementary School that left him paralyzed and on a ventilator.Mathew Mumbauer has been at Massachusetts General Hospital since the day after the incident, which reportedly occurred less than two weeks ago, according to the boy’s cousin, Audrey Spencer.Spencer, who described herself as the boy’s “auntie” said Mumbauer was healthy and had no known medical problems.Spencer said the boy is on a ventilator suffering from a collapsed lung and that a tracheotomy may be necessary.?From what I was told, after the incident he was able to walk into the classroom, but the next day, he couldn’t get out of bed. He had a paralysis, from the chest down,” she said.Spencer said the boy’s mother, Alyssa Cormier of Lynn, has been at the boy’s beside.?His mother works at the Dunkin’ Donuts on Western Avenue but she has been at the hospital with Matthew,” she said. “There has been some improvement, but not very much. And we don’t know if he’s going to get any better.”Mumbauer has two siblings, Spencer said.?We were told Matthew was bullied. There has been a problem with that all year, but Matthew can’t tell us more about what happened right now because he’s on a ventilator,” she said. “Before this, he was a healthy young man.”Superintendent of Schools Nicholas Kostan has been out of town on a planned vacation this week, and has not been briefed on the family’s accusations.School Committee Secretary Thomas Iarrobino said Friday afternoon that school officials have spoken with the Brickett School staff, who say they were unaware of any incident involving the bullying of Mumbauer.?We have done a little bit of leg work, and we can’t find any evidence of an incident at the school,” he said.Iarrobino declined to comment further until he has been able to brief Kostan and speak with the Department’s legal team on Monday.A timeline of the events leading to Mumbauer’s hospitalization is unclear, due to both side’s unwillingness to comment without first seeking legal counsel, but Spencer did say that he was able to participate in school for the remainder of the day before the effects of his injuries took over.The family has posted fliers throughout the city’s business district promoting an April 12 fundraiser for Mumbauer, and briefly describing the incident as an “act of bullying.”As of Friday evening, Mumbauer remained hospitalized at Massachusetts General Hospital, although his family remains hopeful that he will be moved to a rehabilitation center soon.?They are trying to get him settled so they can get him into rehab,” Spencer said. “Everything is still up in the air until they can get him up and moving again. He is still in ICU right now.”