A first-grader was playing around. A teacher shoved his face into a wall, cops say.
A Palm Beach County first-grader lost a tooth and suffered a busted lip after a teacher “violently” shoved his face into a wall, police say.
Cynthia Smith, a 64-year-old teacher at Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune Elementary in Riviera Beach, faces one count of child abuse.
Surveillance footage from Jan. 28 shows the 7-year-old touching a bulletin board before Smith approaches him from behind and pushes his head into the wall, according to the arrest report. She then walks away from the student.
This wasn’t the first time Smith had been cited. The principal told the detective that she had “at least four” previous cases during her 12-year tenure at the school, the report says.
“The students are afraid of her,” the detective wrote. The principal “has received numerous complaints from parents.”
When interviewed about the incident, Smith denied touching the first-grader, telling investigators that she saw another student push him.
The 7-year-old, however, recounted a different tale.
“He said that he was messing with the board,” the detective continued, “Ms. Smith pushed his face into the wall, and his tooth came out.”
Smith was arrested and charged Jan. 31. Court records show she posted her $3,000 bond the next day.
According to a Palm Beach School District spokesperson, Smith has been placed on reassignment, meaning that she can have no contact with children.
