A Britton Middle School teacher allegedly grabbed a student by his sweater, raised his fist and told him “I hate you.”
The student, 14-year-old eighth grader Jeremy Garcia, switched his papers before the timer for a quiz went off, which reportedly caused social studies teacher George Karr to grab the student.
“It’s not right what he did, he’s here to teach,” said Garcia’s mother Irma Ramos.
The incident took place March 1. After the teacher grabbed the student, he immmediatly left the room and went to tell Principal Glenn Webb what happened, said Ramos. Webb called Ramos about an hour after the incident occurred. She came to the school to speak with the principal and take her son home for the day.
Ramos filed a police report. She is unsure if she is going to press charges against Karr over the incident, which police told her is considered an assault. Ramos said she is waiting for a copy of the police report. The Times has requested a copy as well.
“If they don’t take care of it and remove him from school, then I will (press charges),” said Ramos. “I don’t want this to happen to other kids.”
Garcia’s brother, Eddy, said Jeremy at first thought the teacher was joking. Realizing the teacher was serious, Jeremy “became emotional.”
“My brother doesn’t want to go back to school,” said Eddy. “He doesn’t feel safe.”
Ramos did not bring Jeremy back to school Friday March 2 as he was still shook up about the incident, but did return him the following Monday.
When the Times called Karr’s classroom March 5, the person answering the phone said Karr was out for the week. Eddy said the principal told his mother that Karr was suspended for two days.
When asked about the incident, Webb said he “can not comment on that.”
Similarly, Morgan Hill Unified School District staff could not comment, as it is a personnel matter. However, MHUSD staff said that suspension is a final act, a result of an investigation and due process. A leave on the other hand, is voluntary, and could be a cause of medical reasons or otherwise.
There are various reasons for suspensions and/or the dismissal of a school employee, according to California Education Code, including immoral or unprofessional conduct or dishonesty.
Education Code also states that the governing board of a school district may suspend an employee without pay for a certain amount of time, on grounds of unprofessional behavior. It is unknown if Karr’s absence for a week from school is a suspension, or related to the incident.
Karr did not respond to emails for comment.
