After it was reported that a Florida elementary school teacher had locked a disabled pupil in a restroom, dragged her around, and strangled her, she was charged with child abuse and false imprisonment.
According to authorities, Beatriz Rapisarda, 41, was taken into custody in relation to events that transpired at Palm Bay’s Sunrise Elementary School this week. Orlando is located more than 70 miles southeast of Palm Bay.
According to a probable cause affidavit, police were called to the school on Thursday in response to a report of physical assault between a teacher and a student.
Once there, witnesses reported to that a teacher and a student—who was characterized as low-functioning and barely verbal—had an encounter in an intellectually impaired classroom.
According to the affidavit, the teacher asked the kid to move to a different area, but the youngster refused, which is when the alleged abuse began. According to the paper, the teacher then gave the pupil a shove “at least twice,” placing two open hands against the student’s chest.
The girl threw herself to the ground in protest, and the paper claimed that the teacher grabbed her by the wrist and “pulled her straight up” before the student threw herself to the ground once more.
According to the complaint, witnesses told the officer that the instructor then climbed on top of the kid, “straddled” her while she lay on her back, and pinned her arms to the ground.
According to the paper, the teacher moved in front of the student as soon as she stood up, grabbed her by the arms, and pulled her in the direction of the restroom.
According to the affidavit, the witnesses informed the police that Rapisarda uses the restroom as a “form of punishment,” frequently placing the kid there and shutting the door with just her foot wedged in it.
In the purported event, the kid’s foot became hooked on a shelf as the teacher dragged him or her across the classroom roughly thirty feet while the student cried and kicked.
According to the affidavit, the teacher pinned the student’s right arm down, seized her ankle and wrist, and pushed the girl away from the shelf while putting her knee in the kid’s back.
One witness told the police that the teacher had “all her weight” on the student, as stated in the affidavit.
The student attempted to crawl away, but the instructor pulled her to the restroom on her back by both wrists, holding the door shut while the student pounded on it for as long as ten minutes, according to the paper.
“The witnesses stated that this action was so shocking that one left the classroom and notified their supervisor,” the affidavit stated.
According to the report, a witness told police about an earlier incident involving the teacher on Tuesday, when she “wrapped” the student in a foam mat in a “burrito” or “swaddle” manner.
The teacher then had the student stand in that position while she encircled the student with her arms for a duration of five to seven minutes. The paper also stated that the witnesses said the teacher had given the special-needs children a restroom timetable and had refused them access if they didn’t use it by the designated time.
According to the document, the teacher’s behavior was deemed “unacceptable” and “aggressive” by the four witnesses, who also described her as “very controlling.” According to the affidavit, the parents informed the officer that they intended to take the case to court.
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In a statement, Brevard Public Schools said that Rapisarda has been placed on administrative leave and that the school is assisting with the inquiry.
With a $10,000 bond, Rapisarda is being held at the Brevard County Jail. Sept. 19 is her planned arraignment, according to online court records.
