Video Captures Maywood Academy Teacher Punching Student
Students recorded a California high school teacher hitting a student after the student used racial slurs towards him.
Students recorded the incident on their phones and posted the video on the Internet.
A high school music teacher in California was arrested after getting physical with a 14-year-old student during band class.
The teacher, Marston Riley, punched the student in the face and continued to swing while other students recorded the incident on their phones.
Riley, 64, was released from the Los Angeles County Jail on Saturday with a $50,000 bail, reports CBS News.
The fight took place on Friday at Maywood Academy and the video has since gone viral.
Witnesses say the confrontation began when Riley asked the student to leave the classroom for not wearing the required school uniform.
The student then used racial phrases including the N-word toward Riley, who is black, and threw a basketball at him.
Cellphone video showed Riley repeatedly hitting the student and at one point using an object to hit him. The student was taken to the hospital for injuries and was released, according to the LA Sheriff’s Dept.
“We take this matter very seriously and do not condone violence or intolerance of any kind,” a statement from the school district said. “Los Angeles Unified is cooperating with law enforcement in investigating this incident”
Students in the classroom explained how they were scared for both the student and teacher, reports Fox News.
“It was back and forth, back and forth, and then the teacher just decided to throw a punch and that’s when everything happened,” a student said.
Other students defended Riley saying he was a nice teacher.
“I had this teacher before and I had no problem with him,” a student said. “He was a really nice teacher, I always respected him. He always had a really good relationship with every student.”
The school district says crisis counselors and additional security officers will be at Maywood Academy on Monday.
Many parents are concerned for their children, calling the situation “out of hand,” while others have created a GoFundMe page for Riley. They say he has been physically and verbally attacked in the past.
Riley’s arraignment has been scheduled for Nov. 30.
The video above is from KTLA.
If you appreciated this article and want to receive more valuable industry content like this, click here to sign up for our FREE digital newsletters!
About the Author
Katie Malafronte, Web Editor
Katie Malafronte is Campus Safety's Web Editor. She graduated from the University of Rhode Island in 2017 with a Bachelor's Degree in Communication Studies and a minor in Writing & Rhetoric. Katie has been CS's Web Editor since 2018.
Related Content
Leading in Turbulent Times: Effective Campus Public Safety Leadership for the 21st Century
This new webcast will discuss how campus public safety leaders can effectively incorporate Clery Act, Title IX, customer service, “helicopter” parents, emergency notification, town-gown relationships, brand management, Greek Life, student recruitment, faculty, and more into their roles and develop the necessary skills to successfully lead their departments. Register today to attend this free webcast!
Although the teacher is the adult in this situation, and should not have become angry to the point of losing control, why are so few people speaking out in defense, or at least understanding, of this teacher? We have leaders of major companies lose their job because of the use of the “n” word in private conversations. But it is ok for a student to refer to his teacher in that way?
It is ok for the student to throw whatever he had in his hands at the teacher in response to a logical request (You are not dressed according to school requirements, go explain yourself to the principal…”)? By ignoring the students behavior, and focusing solely on the teacher allows the student to become the hero, the winner…
It is unacceptable and unfortunate the teacher lost control of his emotions and “snapped,” but as humans we all have our limits. HOWEVER… why is no one talking about the two felonies and misdemeanor committed FIRST by the student? In CA assault & battery on a teacher can be felonies. Likewise, racial epithets are NOT free speech and use of language likely to produce an inherent violent reaction is also illegal. So, why wasn’t the student also arrested for these crimes???
It is about time somebody held a student accountable for unacceptable behavior. From what I see in the video, regardless of the words used by either party, the thrown basketball constitutes an assault to which the teacher has a right to defend himself using appropriate force. He had a reasonable expectation that if he (the teacher) had not defended himself the student would have continued and/or escalated his assault. Violence in schools rarely, if ever, is initiated by teachers or staff and those working in battle zones have a right to defend themselves against physical assault. I don’t usually give away my money but having worked in a school/battle zone myself I’m going to find the fund me page and donate to help this teacher defend himself.