Rally Demands Justice for Trenton Lehrkamp as Outrage Grows Online

Protesters in Georgia are calling for justice for Trenton Lehrkamp, a 19-year-old from Glynn County who supporters say was assaulted and tortured "for hours."

Lehrkamp, who remains in hospital, was picked up from his home on March 21 by "a group of people who he thought were his friends," according to a GoFundMe page set up to help pay for his medical bills.

The fundraiser's organizer wrote that the teenager, known as Trent, "expected to have a casual night with his friends.

"Trent wouldn't know until it was too late that these were not friends, but vile and abusive perpetrators who would go on to torture, humiliate, and assault him in inhumane, terrifying ways for hours."

Local station WTOC11 reported that this group forced Lehrkamp to drink an excessive amount of alcohol and other substances.

Multiple videos and pictures of the incident have been circulated online, sparking outage on social media. One photo on Twitter appears to show the 19-year-old unconscious and covered in spray paint.

Glynn County Police Department said in a statement that Southeast Georgia Health Center "reported three juveniles had pulled up to the emergency room and told staff they had an individual in the vehicle they needed to bring in.

"The three juveniles registered their names with the ER and then departed the hospital after they asked the hospital staff if they could leave prior to GCPD arrival."

Lehrkamp was placed on a ventilator in the ICU. He is still battling fever and a lung infection, according to the GoFundMe, which has raised more than $85,000.

On Monday, supporters of Lehrkamp gathered outside the hospital to demand the perpetrators be held accountable.

The demonstration was organized by Theawanza Brooks, a local activist and aunt of Ahmaud Arbery, who was murdered in a hate crime three years ago.

Brooks told reporters: "It is very important that [Trent] knows he has more friends than them."

She added: "From what we know, Trent lost his mom, but if he looks outside this afternoon he will see he has got a lot of mommas out here. He got some grandmommas out here, he has got some people he can actually trust."

Glynn County School District told Newsweek it could not comment on the incident while the investigation continues, but it shared a message it had sent to local families.

The message read: "We are aware of the allegations of an off-campus incident that involved several of our former and current students. At this time, the Glynn County Police Department is actively investigating this matter, and we are cooperating. Please know that we take very seriously all concerns regarding the safety and wellbeing of our students, both on and off campus.

"We understand the significant community concern and interest in this situation, and will continue to work diligently to provide an atmosphere where students feel safe, comfortable and ready to learn.

"It is our common practice to follow Georgia Department of Education law, specifically O.C.G.A. 20-2-768 that states 'students may be disciplined for conduct off-campus, which could result in the student being criminally charged and which makes the student's continued presence at school a potential danger to persons or property at the school or which disrupts the educational process.'"

It added: "Incidents like this have no place in education and will not be tolerated here in Glynn County Schools."

Glynn County's Public Information office communications director Katie Baasen spoke to Newsweek and said at this time, the only information they have is the press release they have released.

In addition to this, she warned: "The information circulating on social media can be misinformation."

Newsweek has contacted the Glynn County Police Department for comment.

Update 3/30/23, 2:14 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from Katie Baasen.