CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) – A Clarksville mom is going before the local Board of Education, calling for an educator to be fired after she allegedly pulled her son’s hair and screamed at him.
On Tuesday, March 26, Jacaira Crockett organized a group that demonstrated at the Clarksville-Montgomery County School Board after an incident stemming back to September 2023.
Crockett said her 4-year-old son, Landon, has autism and is non-verbal. She said on Sept. 21, 2023, Landon came home pointing to his hair.
“I didn’t think anything of it until I received a phone call that afternoon,” Crockett explained.
After the phone call from the school district, she and her husband reviewed video of a disturbing response after her son was reportedly having a meltdown in the cafeteria.
Records from the Clarksville-Montgomery County School System (CMCSS) allege that a tenured teacher screamed in Landon’s face and covered his mouth in response to him screaming. She is also accused of pulling Landon’s hair after he allegedly pulled hers.
News 2 is choosing not to name the teacher since she has not been charged with a crime.
Crockett noted the individual was not Landon’s teacher and said she didn’t feel her actions were appropriate in response to her son’s “meltdown.”
“It worries me, not only for my son, but for other kids who are under her care,” Crockett said.
In response, the teacher shared a written statement with the district, saying she attempted to mimic Landon’s screaming to “surprise him” and reason with him. She also claimed she didn’t pull his hair, but simply touched his braid. In addition, the statement added, “I placed my hand toward his mouth—but did not touch him—to muffle the sound. I could feel his hot breath on my hand as it came out in big puffs.”
According to the district, the Department of Children’s Services (DCS) initially closed its case “without substantiation” and the District Attorney’s Office did not file charges. However, in February, CMCSS said the District Attorney reviewed the case again. Then this month, on March 13, the teacher was moved to an “alternative work site” after a new DCS investigation into the incident where the teacher was “substantiated.”
“My goal from the beginning has been for her to be removed from the school, for her to lose her job, and to serve as justice, not only for my kid, but every child,” Crockett said.
Crockett said in addition to the teacher being terminated, she would also like to see criminal charges brought in the matter. CMCSS notes that criminal charges would have to come from law enforcement or the District Attorney’s Office.
“All I can do as a parent is make sure that I’m fighting till the very end, until justice is served,” Crockett said.
CMCSS told News 2 that if DCS upholds a substantiation of child abuse for any teacher, it will try to terminate the teacher.
