A Georgia middle school teacher’s resignation has sparked outrage after he was captured on video tossing an 11-year-old student across a classroom and allegedly making inappropriate remarks about the child’s mother.
The disturbing incident has raised serious concerns about student safety and the conduct of educators in schools.
The altercation occurred at DeRenne Middle School, where teacher and football coach BeTreylin Elder confronted sixth-grader TJ in front of the class. According to TJ’s mother, Che’Nelle Russell, the situation escalated when her son approached Elder to address remarks the teacher allegedly made about her.
“I was told that he had a share of words that were inappropriate to TJ and that he had made some remarks about me, and my son was unhappy with it,” Russell told WTOC, a local news outlet.
Video footage from the classroom shows TJ standing up to Elder, asking him to “stop talking about my mom.”
What followed shocked not only the students in the room but also the broader community: Elder grabbed TJ by the chest, lifted him off the ground, and flung him into a desk. The impact sent the preteen sprawling onto the floor. As TJ attempted to get up, Elder loomed over him, intensifying the distressing scene.
Russell said the remarks her son referred to were “sexual in nature,” including one where Elder allegedly joked about leaving his shoes at her house.
