Teen Facing Felony Trial for Assault on Teacher

In a rare prosecution, the district attorney’s office is charging a 16-year-old Mission Viejo High School student with severely beating a coach who was trying to break up a fight last week.

In filing the charges Wednesday, Orange County prosecutors evoked a little-used state law that makes it a felony to physically attack a teacher.

The coach suffered a dislocated finger and a chipped elbow bone as well as cuts and bruises on his face and body while trying to restrain the student and bring him to the principal’s office, authorities said.

“What was rare about this case is that the attack was so violent and continuing,” Senior Deputy Dist. Atty. Joe D’Agostino said.

The incident has shocked school officials and prosecutors who noted that most cases of violence against teachers involve verbal threats or minor shoving incidents that warrant only misdemeanor charges. Last year, the district attorney’s office filed only one such felony assault charge, involving a La Habra attack on a Sonoma High School teacher by a student.

Officials said they are troubled by the small but increasing number of violent incidents between students and teachers and believe authorities must crack down now to prevent the problem from growing.

“This is something we’ve been concerned about,” D’Agostino said. “We want to make sure it will not happen again.”

The teen, who was not identified because he is a minor, faces up to three years and eight months in a state youth facility if convicted on one felony count each of assault and battery.

According to authorities, a fight broke out April 1 between two students during noon recess. Bill Smith, 58, the football and tennis coach, went to intervene when he saw the suspect kick one of the fighters. Smith grabbed the teen, but he ran away to a nearby classroom. When Smith and another teacher finally caught up with him, they got into a fight in which Smith was injured, D’Agostino said.

The boy has not been arrested and will be notified to appear in court for his arraignment.

Smith, who according to D’Agostino is vacationing for spring break, could not be reached for comment.

Dist. Atty. Anthony J. Rackauckas recently met with several school superintendents to discuss ways of cracking down on such crimes.

“Students who assault teachers will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said Rackauckas, who promised to crack down on youth violence during his campaign last year. “We need to be very vigilant, and we need to stop it wherever we see it.”

According to a state report released last month, incidents of all types of battery at Orange County school rose over the last year but still remained below statewide averages. But county officials said that doesn’t mean authorities should be complacent.

Elaine Carter, a spokeswoman for the Saddleback Valley Unified School District, where Mission Viejo High is located, said district Supt. Peter A. Hartman has requested a meeting with Orange County school and law enforcement officials to discuss the problem.

In the district, there were at least two other incidents earlier this year where students verbally threatened teachers, Carter said.

“We treat them very seriously,” she said, adding the district has “zero tolerance” for any assaults on teachers. The two students were recommended for expulsion, she said.

D’Agostino said his division has seen a marked increase in verbal assaults against teachers by students over the last few years.

Violence against teachers is a subject of concern for officials nationwide, said Ronald Stephens, executive director of the National School Safety Center.

In 13 states, it is already a felony to physically assault a teacher, and a growing number of jurisdictions are considering similar measures, Stephens said. The Texas Legislature is currently considering such a law.

And Gov. Gray Davis last month called for a new statewide “zero tolerance” policy on violence against teachers, including increased incarceration for students.

“Teachers are just tired of being assaulted, and there are so few remedies,” Stephens said. He added that for Orange County officials to crack down now is a good idea.

“When it comes to assaulting teachers, that sets the climate for the entire school,” he said. “If the teachers don’t feel safe, certainly the students won’t feel safe.”