News 12 at 11 o'clock -- March 20, 2010

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- The fight for justice continues for Terence Reese, a 16-year-old beaten while walking his friend home from school.

Investigators say a group of alleged gang members are behind the attack, but the attackers aren't the only ones being accused of gang activity.

Terence's mother Taanja Reese said she was shocked when a defense attorney accused her son, the victim, of also being in a gang.

"Terence was even saying, 'You know mom I really thought about forgiving them in my heart until I heard them say I was a gang member," she said. "And he said that is just absolutely not true."

A's and B's make up Terence's most recent report card, she showed News 12.

She said seeing his alleged attackers in court wasn't easy Friday, but being accused of gang activity made it even worse.

"How much more does he have to go through because of what these kids did to him?" she asked. "When is it going to be enough?"

The five gang members accused are in the Youth Detention Center, including 14-year-old Brandon Mansson, Tahlea Mansson said her son Brandon is not in a gang.

"None of these kids are in a gang," Mansson said. "I don't know whether they beat him or they didn't beat him because I was not there"

She does admit her son was there when the attack allegedly happened.

"You can say it ties him into it because he was there," Mansson said. "But just because you know a person doesn't affiliate you with the same thing they do."

It's one reason she said her son, 14-year-old Brandon is wrongfully accused.

"They need to find out exactly what happened," Mansson said. "Now those who did take part in it I can say punish those kids because what they did was wrong. But if he didn't touch them or anything, why punish my child if he didn't do anything?"

But investigators say the five arrested hospitalized Terence and some even bragged about it. Taanja just wants them to pay for her son's pain and suffering.

"He's the victim," Taanja said. "He's not the one who did anything wrong besides walk down a road, a public road that we pay taxes for."

Terence's mother says one of the teens was released to his mother earlier this month and at Friday's court appearance he was detained again.

She says the whole group will be back in court April 16th to see whether or not the attackers will be tried as adults.

Terence however might have to go back into surgery on Monday.