A 15-year-old male student was arrested for aggravated assault and other charges last week after he grabbed a teacher’s aide from behind in a portable classroom at Stansbury High School.
The aide had locked her classroom when the student came to the door of the portable and knocked, according to the Tooele County Sheriff’s Office. He asked for a signature on a form and once she finished signing, the student grabbed the aide from behind.
When the teacher’s aide yelled out, the student placed his hand over her mouth and nose, according to the sheriff’s office. She was able to struggle and break free, exiting the portable classroom where she called for help.
A teacher then came to her aid and escorted the student back to the high school, the sheriff’s office said. The school resource officer was then involved, and took the student into custody on charges of aggravated assault, assault against a teacher and unlawful detention.
The student was from a locally-based group home, according to the Tooele County School District. He was transported to a juvenile detention facility where he was held, following his arrest.
The teacher’s aide was provided medical and counseling services, as well as paid leave, according to the school district. She has since been moved to a different classroom and is back at work.
“There were procedures in place to help prevent something from happening, but incidents still occur,” said Marie Denson, Tooele County School District’s communications director, in an email. “We are now looking into providing safety care training to some of our general education teachers.”
The safety care training is already provided to behavioral and special needs teachers to help de-escalate situations, Denson said.
Staff writer Tim Gillie contributed to this report.