After a text exchange, a mother of an 11-year-old is speaking out. He sent her a photo of his mouth taped shut by a Johnston Middle School teacher.
Catherine Webster did not speak out about the incident until after a police investigation was complete.
She claimed that Brady, her son, had sent the photo to her while he was at Smithfield Middle School. WRAL-TV obtained the photo and it showed many strips of painter’s tape covering the boy’s mouth up to his eyes.
“I asked, What is it?” Webster said to WRAL, “Who did that?” “And, he didn’t respond.”
Webster claims her son is a class clown, talkative, and can get very emotional. However, she believes that tapping his mouth closed was an inappropriate way of dealing with him.
After she had told LaShunda Faaisonm, the school principal, about her concerns, the school started an investigation. The boy stated that this was not the first time that the teacher had taped his mouth and that he had done it to other students. The teacher also tied the wrists of students with painter’s tape, he said.
Johnston County Public Schools stated that the teacher resigned within days of the incident being reported.
The district issued a statement regarding the incident.
The district stated that Johnston County Public Schools takes allegations of misconduct by staff seriously.
The statement said that although we are unable to discuss specific details of an investigation into alleged misconduct by staff, we can confirm that our administration responds quickly to such allegations by investigating them and sometimes removing staff from classrooms until a thorough review is completed.” “School administrators are always available and willing to talk with parents about any concern that may arise.”
According to the school, the teacher was hired in August.
WRAL was told by police that there wasn’t enough evidence to bring charges against the ex-teacher, despite other allegations from parents.
Webster stated, “I want to know who will be held responsible so that this doesn’t happen again.”
Here’s a local report on the incident
