A Roosevelt ISD mother, Michelle Decker is speaking out against the school district after she said the assistant principal used excessive force when discipline her fifth grade son with corporal punishment after he talked back to a teacher.
“She said Gianni has two choices, he can either go to ISS for three days or he can get three swats,” Decker said. “Gianni told me he didn’t want to go to ISS, he said ‘I’ll take the swats Mom”
Decker said when her son got home she noticed him limping up the stairs, and when she asked him to show her what was wrong, she noticed dark bruises on him.
“He pulled his pants down and I immediately started crying,” Decker said. “I spank my children but I would never hurt them the way he was hurt,”
The Roosevelt ISD Superintendent, Dallas Grimes gave a statement:
Corporal punishment has been approved by the Roosevelt ISD Board of Trustees as an appropriate disciplinary consequence for Code of Conduct violations. Corporal punishment is an option all parents/guardians have the option of opting out of at any time Parents/guardians verbally authorize their consent immediately prior to the punishment being administered each time it is used. The school district has investigated the concerns to determine if policy and procedures were followed. At this time Roosevelt ISD is confident all policies and procedures were adhered to in this situation.”
-Dallas Grimes, Roosevelt ISD Superintendent
