I-TEAM: Brusly parent banned from school following racist road rage incident

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - A parent at Brusly High School has been banned from the property indefinitely following a racist road rage incident that spilled onto the school’s property last month. According to a spokesperson with West Baton Rouge Parish School System, Sarah Averette, 40, is no longer welcome on the school’s property.

Jasmine Mills, was horrified when she turned to the WAFB I-TEAM after she says her daughter was threatened following that road rage incident.

“I just want to know why, you know,” said Mills. “Why would you say the things you said to a 17-year-old?”

Mills’ daughter was driving to school at Brusly High when the young girl says she accidentally cut in front of someone. After she went to class, the woman who was driving the other car—Averette—followed the teenage student to the school. Once the girl was inside the school, the woman allegedly circled the student parking lot before leaving a threatening and racist note on the student’s car.

The 17-year-old asked WAFB not to identify her out of fear but she says she had no idea this had even happened until her friends saw the note and reported it to the front office.

“I didn’t know people still act like that,” the student said. “I was shocked because I was in the classroom when it happened so I didn’t know what was going on and everybody was just texting my phone saying somebody left something on your car.

”The WAFB I-TEAM obtained a picture of the expletive-filled and racist note. It reads, “ATTENTION B*TCH.. I KNOW WHO YOU ARE AND I WILL F*CKING FIND YOU AND F*CK UP YOUR CAR WHEN YOU DON’T EXPECT IT. LEARN HOW TO F*CKING DRIVE.. NI**ER.”

”It made me feel bad and it made me feel really bad for my daughter,” said Mills. “You know, at 17 years old she got to witness that there’s still racism out here and despite us being in 2024, this is what we’re still facing as African Americans.”

WAFB’s Scottie Hunter asked the mother if she was ever nervous that the woman was going to act on her threats.

“Yes, I was very nervous and my daughter was nervous,” said Mills. “Monday, she didn’t even want to go to school because she thought the lady was going to follow her to school. The way the world is now, you have to take precaution of everything. Don’t take nothing as ‘oh they’re not going to do nothing’ because people do anything now.”

Mills says she is disgusted that a grown woman would take things so far, especially targeting an underage girl.

“It makes me very angry,” said Mills.

According to arrest records, deputies with the West Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office got involved, using surveillance video from the school as well as license plate readers on the highway to track down Averette. She was charged with criminal mischief, but Mills says that’s not enough.

”I feel like that charge has nothing to do with what she has done and her threatening my child and you came on the school premises to threaten my child,” said Mills. “You circled around the parking lot to look for my child so what if you would have gotten into contact with my daughter? What would you have done to her? So I feel like more should be done about it.”

The WAFB I-TEAM tried to reach out to a number listed for Averette but a woman who answered the phone hung up abruptly. Averette’s attorney later sent the following statement on behalf of Averette.

“Sarah is profoundly sorry to the person she offended with hurtful words written in anger. Out of remorse, she tried to retrieve the note soon after, but was unfortunately too late. Her multiple requests to meet with the victim and her family to personally apologize were to no avail. Sarah takes responsibility for her mistake and accepts the consequences. She humbly prays for forgiveness as she has learned from her mistake and will become a better person for it.”

Mills says someone did try to reach out on behalf of the woman but she says a simple apology does not erase the threats against her daughter nor the fear that she’s been dealing with.

“That was wrote with passion and to threaten her? That should not have went that far,” Mills said.

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