When the student did not adhere to Fields’ instructions to leave class, he used physical force to remove her. “I will not give any excuse for parts of his actions, nor attempt to justify them”.
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The student who took the classroom video, Tony Robinson, summed up the lesson he learned that is instructive for police as well.
In the video, the student was reportedly asked by her teacher to leave the classroom and go to the discipline office, but she ignored the instruction.
Lott was also critical of the teen’s behavior, which he stated started the incident.
“The students donned t-shirts reading “Free Fields” and “#BringBackFields” in support of the officer, Ben Fields.
“There’s no justification for a few of his actions”, the sheriff told CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360°” on Tuesday night. A few moments later, he grabbed the student as she was in her seat, which caused the girl and the chair to flip over onto the floor. Fields can then be seen dragging the girl for several feet and restraining her on the ground.
Lott said he learned that all of the work he and his deputies have done in past years helping to build community – with churches, with schools, with residents – has not suffered because of this incident. “This wasn’t his intent”.
The agency’s training unit determined from the videos that Fields did not follow proper training and procedure, the sheriff said. “She has a Band-Aid on her forehead where she suffered rug burn”.
The girl in the video remains unidentified, but she has obtained an attorney – Todd Rutherford, who also serves as House minority leader in South Carolina’s Legislature. A classmate, Niya Kenny, 18, was also arrested on the same charge. He doesn’t believe the School Resource Officer should have ever been allowed inside the classroom. Reports indicate that at no point did she become violent, belligerent, or even raise her voice.
“I would actually let the administrator talk to them and I would offer advice but I wouldn’t go so far as to be that excessive with a child over a cell phone”, he said.
We are the Rutherford Law Firm, LLC located in Columbia, SC. We now represent the Spring Valley High School Victim who was assaulted by former Deputy, Ben Fields.
Richland School District Two Superintendent Debbie Hamm thanked the sheriff and his department Wednesday for their “swift response”.
“There may be a few who think this is the end of the matter. I hope we continue to build the bridges we have between our citizens and the Richland County Sheriff’s Department”.
Each time that happens, it becomes that much harder to bridge the gap between law enforcement and the citizens they are supposed to protect.
“That was just a bad situation”, said School Resource Officer Donald Bridges. Lott, who rushed home from an out of town conference when the news broke, said that a teacher and vice principal in the classroom at the time felt the officer acted appropriately. “This is not a cop’s job”. Upon learning of the incident, school and district administrators began an investigation. Our schools must have an educational environment.
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“With the relationship that you have with kids, they no longer see the uniform. Not somebody that we need to be scare off, or afraid”.
