Fight between two 7-year-olds turns violent after mom gets involved
An argument between two young children playing outside together escalated to violence when a parent got involved, a North Bay mom says.
North Bay police confirm they have charged a 33-year-old female with assault in the incident that happened nearly two weeks ago.
"As this incident involves minors, in order to protect their identity, I cannot release the name of the accused," North Bay Police Service spokesperson David Woolley told CTV News in an email Thursday afternoon.
CTV News spoke with the victim's mom, Stephanie, and is omitting her last name to protect her son's identity.
Stephanie told CTV News in a phone interview on Thursday afternoon her son was playing outside with other kids in the neighbourhood on McNamara Street when he got into an argument with one of his friends over the sharing of sleds.
She was out of town at the time with her other child at a basketball tournament, so her son was staying with a babysitter.
After the argument, the kids went their separate ways and he went to a nearby corner store with his babysitter's older son, she said.
While he was there, Stephanie said the mother of the girl he had a disagreement with came up to him, held him against the wall and choked the seven-year-old.
A store clerk intervened, escorted her out and walked the boys back to the babysitter's house.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
When Stephanie found out what happened, she said she called police right away.
"He is very shook up and scared, but he is physically OK," she said.
The accused was charged Jan. 30 after police compiled video footage and witness statements, Stephanie said.
After the incident, Stephanie said she reached out to the other mom whose response was, "went to your door, nobody answered, so I handled it." An apology has never been offered, she said.
As a result of the attack, she said her son doesn't want to play outside because the accused lives nearby and luckily, the two children don't go to school together.
Both victim and witness services have reached out to offer the young victim counselling, Stephanie said.
All she wants is for the neighbourhood children to be safe again, she added.
The accused was released on an undertaking following her arrest and is scheduled to appear in court March 14.
The charge has not been proven in court.
Correction
The gender of the other child involved in the argument was incorrectly identified as male in the initial publication, the friend was a 7-year-old female and the article above has been corrected.
The victim's mother clarified the assault took place Jan. 21 and while she called police that same day, they went in to make an official report the next day.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Restaurants and bars brace for biggest alcohol tax jump in 40 years
Canada's restaurant industry is bracing for the biggest jump in the country's alcohol excise duty in more than 40 years, spurring warnings the tax hike could force some bars and restaurants out of business.

PM Trudeau, President Biden agree to end 'loophole' in Safe Third Country Agreement: sources
Canada and the United States are negotiating a deal that could see asylum seekers turned back at irregular border crossings across the border, including Roxham Road in Quebec.
Utah bans kids from accessing social media during evening hours, without parent consent
Children and teens in Utah would lose access to social media apps such as TikTok if they don't have parental consent and face other restrictions under a first-in-the-nation law designed to shield young people from the addictive platforms.
Make sure to check your grocery bill otherwise you may pay more: Survey
A majority of Canadians have seen a mistake on their grocery receipts in the last year, according to a new survey conducted by Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University.
Asteroid to hurtle past Earth closer than the moon this weekend
An asteroid discovered just last week will pass closer to the Earth than the orbit of the moon this weekend, an occurrence so rare it happens only once in a decade, according to NASA.
Opposition parties affirm call for interference inquiry, amid questions over MP Han Dong
Amid renewed questions over the pervasiveness of alleged interference by China in Canadian elections and affairs broadly, opposition MPs voted Thursday afternoon to affirm a parliamentary committee's call for the federal government to strike a public inquiry.
Eastern Ont. mayor wants more help from feds to manage influx of asylum seekers, supports STCA renegotiation
As the federal government looks to renegotiate the Safe Third Country Agreement with the U.S., an eastern Ontario mayor says his city needs more help from Ottawa to deal with the influx of asylum seekers arriving through irregular crossings like Roxham Road.
U.S. President Joe Biden touches down in Ottawa
U.S. President Joe Biden arrived Thursday evening in Ottawa for a whirlwind 27-hour visit expected to focus on both the friendly and thorny aspects of the Canada-U.S. relationship, including protectionism and migration on both sides of the border.
Norad, Haiti, migration, critical minerals to top agenda for Trudeau and Biden
U.S. President Joe Biden is embarking on a 27-hour whirwind visit to Ottawa, where he will meet Friday with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and speak to a joint session of Parliament -- his first bilateral sojourn north as commander-in-chief.