Kaylee Gain, the Missouri teen involved in a harrowing incident where her head was bashed into the pavement, had been exchanging insults online with her attacker for weeks before the assault on March 8, her father has revealed. Clinton Gain, 41, said that he went through Kaylee's phone to try to see what happened in the lead-up to a vicious school fight.
Gain who spoke to the New York Post described how his daughter battled to recover from the horrific school beating that changed her life, suffering from brain bleeding, being unable to walk alone, and now "talking in a loop." Her parents revealed that they are still in shock.
Insulted for Weeks Before Brawl
Maurnice DeClue, 15, repeatedly smashed Kaylee of St. Louis in the skull after a heated dispute, leaving her in critical condition at first. According to multiple sources speaking to The Post, the teenagers were part of rival friend groups at Hazelwood East High School, located near St. Louis.
The tension escalated after Kaylee was involved in a school fight with a friend of DeClue, resulting in Kaylee's suspension the next day.
This incident triggered a new wave of threatening phone calls between Kaylee and DeClue, who is now facing felony assault charges.
According to Kaylee's father, the two girls agreed to settle their dispute in a one-on-one confrontation, although he preferred not to disclose the precise contents of the messages exchanged.
"They both agreed to the fight, to meet up and settle what was going on," he told the outlet.
The grieving father along with his wife Jamie visits his child in the hospital daily. Jamie said that both teenagers had made a "terrible decision" to resolve their conflict through violence.
The couple refuted the narrative that Kaylee had bullied DeClue, 15, and said that their messages to each other contained equally hostile content.
Parents Demand Justice
"We hope the justice system sees that she went way overboard and nearly killed her," Jamie Gain said of DeClue's aggressive nature of pounding Kaylee's head into the concrete and leaving her visibly twitching on the floor.
"And that it doesn't matter who said what to who before it all happened."
The couple also shared their heartbreak at seeing Kaylee unconscious after the altercation.
"I was just really concerned, really worried when I first saw her in the hospital ... But we're there every day."
The couple also provided an insight into Gain's challenging recovery journey at a hospital in St. Louis.
"Some days are better than others," Clinton said. "Some days she will laugh a little bit, other days she'll be quiet."
Gain said that Kaylee needs help to walk due to her lingering weakness and instability, resulting from a fractured skull and brain bleeding. "She'll ask us why she is there in the hospital," Gain said. "She doesn't remember the fight or a few days before it. We told her what happened, but not too much."
Most of Kaylee's days are filled with speech and movement therapy sessions as she works on recovering from her injuries. "She speaks, but it doesn't always make sense," Jamie said. "She sort of talks in a loop."
Gain and DeClue met at an area known for hosting teenage fights, located a mile away from their school, on the day of the altercation. The altercation escalated with both parties exchanging blows, but DeClue gained the advantage, mounting Gain and repeatedly slamming her skull against the sidewalk.
Prosecutors are seeking to charge DeClue as an adult in the case, and a hearing on the matter is scheduled for May 1.
