Florida Teacher Hospitalized After Attack From 5-Year-Old
A Florida teacher has been hospitalized after an attack from a 5-year-old in school.
A South Florida teacher was found “dazed” and “unresponsive” after an attack at Pines Lakes Elementary School that resulted in her being hospitalized. While the attack upon the schoolteacher is horrible in itself, what makes the incident even more horrific is that the Florida teacher was attacked by a 5-year-old. Pines Lakes Elementary is located about 15 miles southwest of Fort Lauderdale.
The redacted police report can be seen below.
First responders found Florida teacher, Trisha Meadows, “sitting on the ground against the wall” while “appearing to be in a faint state.” This information came from a heavily redacted Pembroke Pines Police Department report. According to the report, the teacher was “clearly weak and dazed” but she was able to “blink and breathe regularly but at no point was able to vocally respond or show signs of a response.”
The violent incident began when the 5-year-old and another 4-year-old student began throwing objects around the classroom. They also started flipping chairs. As the incident continued, the Florida teacher was unable to stop the children from their destruction. When the assistant principal and school monitor arrived, the victim took the 5-year-old into the “cool down” room, which was a nearby empty smaller room.
It was in the cool-down room that the 5-year-old turned his massive anger toward the Florida teacher. Once inside, the youngster began to attack the Florida teacher with his hands and feet, punching, kicking and biting. Meadows, slight in stature, took the brunt of the 5-year-olds weight, falling backward, slamming her head hard enough to cause a serious concussion.
Meadows was taken to Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood, Florida, and was eventually released. Although the young student is under investigation, a police spokesperson says it is highly unlikely the boy will be criminally prosecuted. The classroom that the Florida teacher taught contained students of special needs. The police spokesperson said that prosecutors would have a hard time showing that the 5-year-old has the ability to determine right from wrong.
Broward Teachers Union president Ana Fusco made her presence known at the school by demanding answers. “The way he pounced on her and the way she fell backwards and smacked her head, it was a severe concussion,” Fusco said via NBC News regarding the Florida teacher. “She’s got some other bodily injuries from him jumping on her, attacking her, kicking, punching, biting that’s going to lead to surgery.”
What is more troubling about this incident with the same 5-year-old, says Fusco, is that it isn’t the first incident involving him and the Florida teacher. “She has been hospitalized several times by this student. It’s not this first time, not the second time, it’s the third time,” said Fusco to WSVN News. According to a parent who didn’t want to be identified, this boy has attacked other kids in class causing black eyes and other injuries.
While in class, there was another incident that involved the boy where he threw a bookcase down while the students sat for their circle time. The bookcase pinned the Florida teacher to the ground. “The district has failed. They need to get in there and when the teachers are saying, ‘I’ve got this happening,’ whether it’s one time. It should never get past one time when it’s that severe of rage and violence,” said Fusco.
The unidentified parent called Meadows, the Florida teacher, a sweet one, saying she has full trust in her with her own child. The parent calls Meadows a “second mom” to her child. Fusco noted that the Florida school and the district did everything right when the incident occurred. Although the district is referring all parent questions and concerns to the police, the school principal did send a message home to parents acknowledging the incident. Sasse said in her message, “At all times during the incident, our campus was secured. As always, the health, safety, and well-being of our students and staff continues to be my highest priority.” Let’s hope for a speedy recovery for the Florida teacher.
