Image Credit: Justice for Landon / Facebook
The Tennessee Conservative Staff –
A Clarksville mother is petitioning the local school board to terminate a tenured teacher who allegedly screamed at her special needs son and pulled his hair.
Jacaira Crockett organized a group that held a demonstration at the Clarksville-Montgomery County School Board on Tuesday, March 26, in relation to a September 2023 incident.
According to Crockett, her 4-year-old son Landon, who has autism and is non-verbal, came home from school on September 21, 2023, pointing to his hair.
Crockett stated that she did not really pay attention to what he was doing until she received a phone call that afternoon from the school.
Records from the school system show that Landon had a meltdown in the school cafeteria. During that incident, a teacher allegedly screamed in his face and covered his mouth as he screamed. She is also accused of pulling his hair after he allegedly pulled hers.
In a written statement from the teacher, she says she was copying Landon’s screaming to “surprise him” and to try to work with him. The teacher also says she touched his braid but did not pull his hair. As for covering his mouth, the teacher said, “I placed my hand toward his mouth – but did not touch him – to muffle the sound.”
An initial investigation by the Department of Children’s Services resulted in a finding of “without substantiation” and no charges were filed by the District Attorney’s Office.
However, after a new review from the DA in February, DCS also launched a new investigation. After that came back as “substantiated,” the teacher was reassigned to an “alternative work site.”
Crockett says she wants to see the teacher fired for the behavior and would also like to see criminal charges be brought.
“My goal from the beginning has been for her to be removed from the school, for her to lose her job, and to serve as justice, not only for my kid, but for every child,” Crockett said.
CMCSS has stated that they would seek termination in any cases where DCS determines that a claim of child abuse by a teacher is substantiated.
