Mom punches middle school teacher in class, breaks her facial bones, after sneaking into school with students: Authorities

A mother repeatedly punched a middle school teacher in a classroom — fracturing her facial bones in the process — after sneaking into the building with students last week, authorities said.

What are the details?

The parent got past Lincoln Middle School security on the morning of Feb. 16 because she's short, had a hood over her head, and appeared to be a student, Syracuse.com reported, citing Syracuse School Superintendent Anthony Davis.

Police said Lynzina Sutton, 31, then located a female teacher she was looking for, the outlet reported.

District Attorney William Fitzpatrick told Syracuse.com that Sutton punched the teacher in the face multiple times, fracturing her nasal bone and maxillary spine bones and giving her a concussion. The teacher has been released from a hospital, the outlet added.

“These are injuries that you don’t often see in boxing matches, so they’re quite serious,” Fitzpatrick added to Syracuse.com.

Davis said Sutton slipped into the school when other students were arriving, and security figured she was a student due to her short stature — Fitzpatrick said Sutton is 4-foot-10-inches tall, the outlet noted.

More from Syracuse.com:

Sutton was with the student’s grandmother but the grandmother was stopped by security, Davis said. The security guard called after Sutton but she didn’t stop, said Amanda Hull, a spokesperson for the district. Sutton kept going, making it to the teacher’s classroom. The guard then radioed for help and the principal stepped in, Hull said.

Sutton punched the teacher in the face in the classroom several times, Davis said. Students were in the doorway of the classroom when it happened and then came into the classroom, he said. The class had about 25-30 students, he said.

The principal tried to de-escalate the situation but was unable to, the superintendent said.

Sutton managed to run off and was arrested in the afternoon, Syracuse Police Chief Joe Cecile told the outlet.

The school went into a “hold in place drill” during the incident, Davis added to Syracuse.com.

Sutton punched the teacher over a report about her child, a student at the school, Fitzpatrick told the outlet, adding that the student had lied about her whereabouts during a school day.

“This led to security being called and then she ... allegedly said, ... 'Well, my mother will take care of this,’” Fitzpatrick added to Syracuse.com.

Davis told the outlet that the attack against the teacher occurred the next morning and that it was one of the worst things he's ever seen as an educator.

“She's going to have some long-term issues," Fitzpatrick told CNYCentral.com regarding the teacher. "I know her nasal passages were severely affected by it." He also hinted to CNYCentral why the attack took place: "You have a child disciplined, and the reaction from the parent is, 'I'm going to come to school and beat up the teacher.'"

Sutton was charged with second-degree assault (injury to school official) and third-degree burglary, Syracuse.com said, adding that Fitzpatrick noted the DA's office is investigating potential charges against the student’s grandmother.

Sutton was held in the Onondaga County Justice Center jail until she made bond, Fitzpatrick added to Syracuse.com; he also said both charges against Sutton carry a maximum of seven years in prison.

Syracuse schools responds to teacher being attackedyoutu.be

Grandmother speaks out

Roxanne Thompkins — Sutton's mother and the student's grandmother — spoke to CNYCentral as part of a separate story, saying, "I’m sorry the teacher got hurt."

“That was never supposed to be that way,” Thompkins told CNYCentral. “I apologize for that, and I hope she recovers. There’s always a better way to handle stuff, and we were going to talk at the school to have a conversation, with the school, like we have numerous times.”

Thompkins added to CNYCentral that Sutton was angry about unresolved bullying her daughter was enduring in school: “She’s been slapped, she’s been kicked, they’ve broken her glasses three times, they’ve broken cell phones twice, and all we get [from the school] is, ‘Well, what is she doing?’ They made her out to be the problem.”

Here's a clip of Thompkins speaking to the media about the situation:

Syracuse mom blends in with students, bursts into daughter’s classroom and breaks teacher’s noseyoutu.be

Thompkins also told CNYCentral that she and Sutton went to the school with the intention of speaking to the principal.

More from the outlet:

Thompkins' version of the events has her and the school principal arriving at the classroom together. Her daughter was already in there. That's when authorities said the teacher was punched repeatedly in the face.

Thompkins said she saw the principal try to intervene.

Afterward, contrary to authorities' claims that Sutton fled, Thompkins said they were escorted out by security.

“We did not flee,” Thompkins added to CNYCentral. “Security grabbed her, and I said, 'C’mon, guys, let’s all just walk out.' I put my arms around everyone. She [Sutton] said, ‘I can’t breathe because they’re squeezing me’. I said, 'Okay, guys, baby steps, let’s go.' And they walked us out the front door.”

Thompkins added to the outlet the school suspended her granddaughter for 60 days last year: “The whole Syracuse City School District should be held accountable. If your kid is being bullied, and you’re going up there, doing all the right things, asking all the right questions, and then all you’re ever hearing is, ‘She is the problem, she’s the problem.’ But her report card shows [some of] her teachers say she’s such a joy to have in class, at what point did she become so bad?”

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