Massachusetts boy faces harassment inquiry for groin punch

BOSTON (AP) -- The mother of a Boston first-grader says her son is being investigated for possible sexual harassment for punching another boy in the groin.

Tasha Lynch says her 7-year-old son acted in self-defense. She said Thursday that the other boy had choked her son on a school bus and stolen his gloves late last month.

She tells The Boston Globe her son was just protecting himself.

A Boston public schools spokesman confirms an investigation but refused to discuss specifics of the encounter or why it has been classified as a possible case of sexual harassment.

Lynch says that because her son punched the other boy in the groin, school officials say they consider it sexual assault. She counters that the other boy should be charged with attempted murder for choking her son.