An angry parent and her mother allegedly showed up at a Syracuse, New York, middle school on February 16, hoping to confront a teacher. Lynzina Sutton, 31, and her mother, Roxanne Thompkins, tried to enter Lincoln Middle School, but Thompkins was reportedly detained by security. Sutton, who apparently appears younger than her age, made her way through and allegedly physically assaulted her daughter's teacher.
Sutton allegedly beat the teacher so badly that she was taken to an area hospital for treatment and will suffer long-term effects from the attack. The mother was arrested and charged with assault and burglary.
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The woman's daughter had allegedly threatened the teacher the day before.
Per the New York Post, the student and the teacher reportedly got into a conversation the day before about the girl's attendance, and she allegedly said, "My mom will handle this," after she was disciplined for lying about her whereabouts during the school day.
The concerned teacher brought the threat to the administration and made an official complaint.
The following day, the mother and grandmother showed up at school.
Sutton and Thompkins arrived at Lincoln Middle School as students were filing into the school for the day, WSYR reported. Sutton, who is reportedly 4 feet 10 inches tall put a hoodie over her face and got past security, but Thompkins was stopped.
Sutton seemingly made her way to the classroom and began a verbal altercation with the teacher. This allegedly escalated and resulted in Sutton physically attacking the teacher and punching her repeatedly in the face.
The teacher was left with significant injuries.
Syracuse City School District's Superintendent Anthony Davis, Onondaga District Attorney Bill Fitzpatrick, and Syracuse Police Chief Joe Cecile held a media conference Tuesday, to discuss what happened.
Davis explained that Sutton circumvented security and did her best to disguise herself and gain entrance to the school and access the teacher. She allegedly attacked her and caused significant injuries that were tended by school nursing staff until emergency crews arrived. Several bones in her face broke, and she has a concussion, the Post reported.
"These are injuries you don't often see in a boxing match," Fitzpatrick said at the media conference. "She's going to have some long-term issues."
Cecile said the blame lies with Sutton. "The sole responsibility of this incident lies with the suspect, who violated not only the law but school protocol and the sanctity of the school. Students should be able to come, have a safe haven, and be protected from both other students and adults, including parents," he said.
Thompkins claims her granddaughter was bullied.
In an interview with WTSM, Thompkins said the school district failed her granddaughter.
"She's been slapped, she's been kicked, they've broken her glasses three times, they've broken cell phones twice, and all we get [from the school] is 'Well what is she doing?' They made her out to be the problem," she said.
Thompkins added that the district needs to do better.
"The whole Syracuse City School District should be held accountable. If your kid is being bullied, and you're going up there, doing all the right things, asking all the right questions, and then all you're ever hearing is 'She is the problem, she's the problem.' But her report card shows [some of] her teachers say she's such a joy to have in class at what point did she become so bad?" the grandmother questioned, according to WTSM.
The grandmother did admit that she was sorry the teacher was injured.
"That was never supposed to be that way," Thompkins said. "I apologize for that, and I hope she recovers. There's always a better way to handle stuff and we were going to talk at the school to have a conversation, with the school, like we have numerous times."
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The teacher is reportedly recovering.
The teacher was released from the hospital and is healing, according to the Post. Sutton reportedly posted a bond and was released from jail. She will appear in court at a later date.
The teacher's plans to return to work have not been revealed.
