31-year-old Lynzina Sutton has been arrested after she allegedly bypassed security at Syracuse's Lincoln Middle School in New York and assaulted her child's teacher in front of an active class.
As reported by WSTM, Sutton managed to walk into the school on Friday, Feb. 16, without being stopped by security in search of the teacher's classroom. When she found the classroom, she burst into the room and attacked the teacher with her bare hands. During the incident, which happened in front of the classroom, she hit the teacher in the face and reportedly left her with broken bones.
"She’s going to have some long-term issues. I know her nasal passages were severely affected by it," said Onondaga County District Attorney Bill Fitzpatrick. “You have a child disciplined, and the reaction from the parent is ‘I’m going to come to school and beat up the teacher.’ ... To have a classroom full of students sit there, I mean, how are they going to be affected? Those are questions that need to be answered."
Fitzpatrick said it's unclear how Sutton was able to gain access to the classroom undetected. Additionally, she wasn't arrested until later in the day, when she was charged with assault, and was able to walk out of the school without security intervening. "It’s disturbing to me that she was able to enter the school," said Fitzpatrick. "Unless you’re vigilant 24/7, it’s meaningless, and I don’t know what happened here. I hope it never happens again."
An investigation into the incident is ongoing, specifically concerning the lack of response from school resource officers and the Syracuse Police Department. Sutton remains in custody following her arraignment on Saturday, when she pleaded not guilty to charges of assault.
