A student attacked a teacher, another student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High, cops say

A ninth-grade student was taken into custody after she attacked a longtime teacher and another student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, authorities said.

The incident happened Monday at the high school, which is at 5901 Pine Island Rd.

Around 2:30 p.m., the student attacked the teacher, hitting her several times in the head and face, the Broward County Sheriff’s Office said. Deputies said the attack was unprovoked.

Sometime during the attack, the student put the teacher in a headlock and bit her right pinkie finger, deputies said.

According to TAP into Coral Springs, a community website, the teacher was Sharon Cutler and the attack happened in her classroom.

Cutler is an Academy of Finance teacher and an advisor for the school’s DECA program who has worked at Marjory Stoneman Douglas for 17 years, according to her LinkedIn profile. She is also the wife of Parkland City Commissioner Ken Cutler.

At some point during the “physical confrontation,” another student was struck, Stoneman Douglas Principal Michelle Kefford said in a message to parents. The Miami Herald obtained a copy of the message.

Deputies say that student was at his desk and was hit on his left shoulder with a cellphone several times, causing bruising.

No serious injuries were reported, according to the Broward public school district. The school district says the school resource officer, security team and staff immediately responded to the incident.

“School leaders are taking this incident seriously and are cooperating with the District’s Special Investigative Unit and law enforcement in their investigation,” the district said in an email. “In addition, the student responsible will face appropriate school disciplinary consequences. Safety and security continue to be the school’s highest priorities.”

The student was charged with battery and battery on a public or private education employee. She was taken into custody.

This story was originally published November 2, 2021 at 10:23 AM.

Michelle Marchante

Miami Herald

305-376-2708

Michelle Marchante covers the pulse of healthcare in South Florida and also the City of Coral Gables. Before that, she covered the COVID-19 pandemic, hurricanes, crime, education, entertainment and other topics in South Florida for the Herald as a breaking news reporter. She recently won first place in the health reporting category in the 2025 Sunshine State Awards for her coverage of Steward Health’s bankruptcy. An investigative series about the abrupt closure of a Miami heart transplant program led Michelle and her colleagues to be recognized as finalists in two 2024 Florida Sunshine State Award categories. She also won second place in the 73rd annual Green Eyeshade Awards for her consumer-focused healthcare stories and was part of the team of reporters who won a 2022 Pulitzer Prize for the Miami Herald’s breaking news coverage of the Surfside building collapse. Michelle graduated with honors from Florida International University and was a 2025 National Press Foundation Covering Workplace Mental Health fellow and a 2020-2021 Poynter-Koch Media & Journalism fellow.  Support my work with a digital subscription

Devoun Cetoute

Miami Herald

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Miami Herald Cops and Breaking News Reporter Devoun Cetoute covers a plethora of Florida topics, from breaking news to crime patterns. He was on the breaking news team that won a Pulitzer Prize in 2022. He’s a graduate of the University of Florida, born and raised in Miami-Dade. Theme parks, movies and cars are on his mind in and out of the office.