12-year-old arrested in death of a classmate following alleged bullying incident

Khimberly Zavaleta's family said the 12-year-old was hit in the head with a metal water bottle.

A child was arrested in connection with the allegedly bullying death of a 12-year-old in Reseda, California, the Los Angeles Police Department said Thursday.

Khimberly Zavaleta's family said the girl was trying to protect her sister from an alleged bullying incident at Reseda High School when a metal bottle struck her dead.

After spending days in a coma and undergoing surgery, the girl died at a hospital in late February, her mother told NBCLA.

"I'm devastated. I'm full of pain, thinking about how I will never see my daughter again,' Elma Chuquipa, Khimberly's mother, said in Spanish.

The girl’s family also filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles Unified School District in March, accusing the district of failing to protect students from bullying. 

“On the afternoon of Feb. 17, Khimberly was trying to protect her sister. She stepped in when the school didn’t,” Robert Glassman, the family’s attorney, said during a news conference in March. “This tragedy really highlights and underscores the very real and very devastating consequences of unchecked bullying.”

The family alleged Khimberly's sister had been bullied prior to the deadly incident, but the school “did not do anything.”

Glassman explained Khimberly had a brain bleed after being hit. After being in a medically induced coma for several days, she died at the UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital on Feb. 25. 

The Zavaleta family said that, despite repeated attempts to get more information on what led to the deadly attack, the LAUSD refused to share details. 

The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed last month that a homicide investigation was underway following Khimberly’s death. The LAPD did not respond to NBC Los Angeles’ inquiry about whether a suspect was identified.