Texas jury awards $3.2M to student falsely accused of race-based bullying

A Texas jury reached a definitive verdict in a case that once sparked national outrage and dominated headlines.

Five years after a classmate accused Asher Vann of racially motivated bullying during a sleepover, jurors awarded Vann, now a college freshman, $3.2 million in damages and found that false allegations and a viral narrative caused severe emotional distress and invaded his privacy.

“I don’t feel as scared and as little as I did back then. I feel like my voice is being heard,” Vann said Tuesday on “The Will Cain Show.”

“I feel like people will understand me and listen to me and help me climb this challenge.”

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The case stemmed from a 2021 incident in which 13-year-old SeMarion Humphrey claimed Vann and several other boys shot her with a BB gun and forced her to drink urine during a sleepover. These accusations were quickly framed as race-based bullying and attracted national media attention, protests, and activist involvement.

Vann said the accusations were far from the truth.

“We went frog hunting. We had big jackets on, such stupid kids, we were each shooting at each other like a Nerf war, except with airsoft guns,” he recalled.

“Then he [Humphrey] He fell asleep, and long before that we were all on the same page, that the first person to fall asleep was being pranked, and he was being pranked, and it was disgusting, but it wasn’t the massive racial torture that was being played out.”

Vann was never charged with a crime, and police investigations at the time did not result in any arrests. But the allegations spread quickly on social media, sparking demonstrations in the Vann family’s neighborhood and calls for school officials to expel him.

Cain asked Asher’s father, Aaron Vann, how the widespread backlash has affected his family.

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A gavel sits on the judge’s bench as people leave the court. A Texas jury awarded Vann $3.2 million in damages. (iStock)

“Everything happens at once. You don’t know what to do. You go into emergency protection mode and [are] “We are protecting your family,” he replied.

“I wanted to bring our story to the fore, but I knew there was a way to do it appropriately that had not been tried by social media.”

Humphrey’s mother, Summer Smith, said in a statement to Fox News:

“The legal claims in this matter are for intentional infliction of emotional distress and invasion of privacy. It is important to note that this does not include claims for defamation or slander. It is also equally important to know that this decision will be appealed.”

“I remain determined to seek justice for my son and will continue to fight strongly on his behalf,” he added.

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Attorney Justin Nichols told Fox News that the jury consisted of five African American members, three Asian members, two Latino members and the remaining white jurors.

He also responded to Smith’s statement live on air.

“This is emblematic of someone who continues to refuse to take responsibility throughout the trial, during his depositions, and even on the stand,” he said.

“They have continued to perpetuate this false narrative of racism that they know does not exist, that it is not true, and instead of finally taking responsibility for harming so many lives, they continue to double down.”