photo courtesy of Lenoir Sheriff Office
A high school teacher has been charged with simple assault after a video went viral of the teacher beating one of her students with an extension cord. The incident occurred on March 29 at South Lenoir High School in North Carolina.
The video showed Graham repeatedly hitting a high school student with a folded extension cord. The student’s arm was raised in an effort to defend their body against the blows from the extension cord while Graham tells the student, “now sit down.”
Another South Lenoir student who was present during the event told WITN, “I heard one of them was sleeping, and that’s why they got hit with the extension cord because they were sleeping.”
He continued, “Half of the school is saying she should be fired, but the other half is saying she shouldn’t be fired. The other half is saying well—the kid deserved it.”
Law enforcement responded to the incident and said that the 71-year-old teacher beat a 16-year-old and a 17-year-old. After reviewing what happened, “law enforcement has been briefed, and the school has communicated with the parents of the students involved.”
Sheriff Jackie Rogers said that the video was alarming.
“This video deeply disturbed me. I am proud of our sheriff’s office personnel who immediately responded to this, and I commend them for their investigation that resulted in this arrest.”
Shannon Taylor, a South Lenoir High School parent, gave her reaction to the outlet after seeing the video. Taylor admitted that she wouldn’t have sat by if her child was struck in the video, “I would’ve whooped her butt. I would’ve whooped her tail over my youngin. I would’ve gone to jail for assault. Any parent would.”
Graham has since resigned from Lenoir County Schools after being a teacher since 1976, and she was formally arrested soon after.