Education

Mom Brutally Beats Veteran Math Teacher In School Hallway, Other Students Join In [VIDEO]

Chuck Ross Investigative Reporter
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A middle school math teacher in Long Island, N.Y. was left unconscious in the hallway of her school on Wednesday after she was attacked by an irate parent who claimed the teacher “put her hands on” her child.

But the teacher, 22-year veteran Catherine Engelhardt, says she did nothing improper to the student and has long been fearful of parents who she says have no control over their children.

The mother, 34-year-old Annika McKenzie, stormed into Alverta B. Gray Schultz Middle School in Hempstead on Wednesday. She said her daughter claimed that Engelhardt had handled her using improper physical force. McKenzie bypassed security and waited for Engelhardt outside of her classroom.

Engelhardt called security during a confrontation, but McKenzie allegedly assaulted her in the meantime, putting the teacher in a head lock until she lost consciousness.

Engelhardt passed out and fell on the ground. Students, including McKenzie’s 14-year-old niece, began punching and kicking the teacher, who laid on the ground for several minutes. She was later taken to the hospital and suffered a concussion.

McKenzie and her niece were both arrested following the incident, which was caught on the school’s security camera. A bystander took a picture of Engelhardt as she was passed out on the ground.

Annika McKenzie with her attorney Youtube screengrab

Annika McKenzie with her attorney (Youtube screengrab)

McKenzie pleaded not guilty to second-degree assault charges and bailed out of jail on Thursday. Her attorney defended her actions, saying that any parent would defend their child.

“Obviously she is very upset but you would also be upset if someone was manhandling your child,” attorney Donald Rollock told reporters.

But Elias Mestizo, the president of the Hempstead Classroom Teachers Association, said there is no evidence that Engelhardt did anything improper to McKenzie’s daughter.

“Yesterday, we saw what we don’t want to see anywhere in any school,” Mestizo told reporters. “Many teachers throughout the district and in this school also do not feel safe in the building, and there are reasons for that. And action needs to be taken immediately.”

Engelhardt was too shaken up to talk about the attack on camera, but provided a statement about the incident to WABC.

“It’s not like I thought a parent would do something, but I knew something violent was going to happen,” she said in the statement. “I’ve warned them time and again that the children have no respect for adults. Yes, I fear for my safety. They can’t control the kids.”

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