Two former Head Start teachers in Greenwood will not be charged criminally, according to Greenwood Police Capt. Nick Futch. The police department interviewed witnesses and reviewed surveillance footage and found no criminal violations, according to Futch.
A parent claims two former Head Start teachers took discipline too far. The mother of a student at Greenwood's GLEAMNS Head Start program tells police teachers spanked her child with a belt, last month.
Capt. Nick Futch with the Greenwood Police Department says, “The report was filed with the police department that a child was punished while at school by one of the teachers. The parent saw some marks on the child's behind and then contacted the police.”
According to the police report, two children told a family member that the students had a name for the belt and that the teachers would spank the kids who were being bad in the bathroom or the closet at the school. Greenwood investigators declined to give us the name the students used to refer to the belt.
Dr. J.D. Patton, the CEO of the GLEAMNS Human Resources Commission, says the teachers no longer work at the school. Dr. Patton says students came forward in early December and said the two teachers hit them on the hand with a ruler, but Dr. Patton says he has no knowledge of a belt being used. Dr. Patton says the school has a zero tolerance policy for allegations of corporal punishment.
“7 On Your Side” wants to know what are the laws regarding corporal punishment in South Carolina. Capt. Futch says, “South Carolina does not have a law that forbids corporal punishment in a school setting. It basically leaves it up to the school or the entity to have their own policy regarding corporal punishment, so long as the punishment is not severe.”
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