A male eighth grade student in Odessa, Texas is facing aggravated assault charges after reportedly attacking a female teacher in class. The fight was caught on cell phone video and has been seen close to 100,000 times.

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The incident happened Wednesday, September 7 at Bowie Middle School, part of the Ector County Independent School District.

Viral Video

The video of the fight made its way around Odessa Facebook groups pretty rapidly, racking up thousands of views. In the video you see a student and a teacher arguing about a cell phone. The argument escalated quickly, resulting in the student wrestling the teacher and slamming her head into the desk.

The following video may be disturbing to some viewers.



According to a report from KXAN, the student was arrested and charged with  aggravated assault of a public servant - a first-degree felony.

Statement From ECISD

Ector County Independent School District spokesperson, Mike Adkins, released a statement to local media reading:

“This is shocking and terrible, and will not be tolerated. We have been dealing with fights and violence recently, and want our community to know that behavior is unacceptable and we will do all we can to prevent it. The student was arrested and charged with a first-degree felony and will also face disciplinary action through the Student Code of Conduct. We have watched violence among children on the rise here, around the state and across the country; we know our children are hurting and need us to address mental health challenges, while we also hold them accountable for their actions. Our district will continue to address these concerns with students and families.”

Teachers Face Increasing Threats, Violence

Sadly, teachers today face more violence and threats than in the past.

A 2022 survey by the American Psychological Association found that from 2015-2016, 6% of teachers reported being physically attacked by a student, while 10% reported receiving threats.

During the 2020 school year, 1/3 of teachers received verbal harassment or threats from students, while an alarming 14% were physically attacked. Even more distressing: most of the violence was committed by students ranging from Kindergarten to 6th grade.

Almost half of teachers said they planned to quit the profession over student attacks, threats, and classroom behavior.

C'mon, parents. We can and should do better than this. Respect starts at home, and our teachers are facing more challenges than ever. Talk to your kids about the importance of paying attention and having respect in the classroom, or your kid might be the next one caught on video doing something violent and disturbing.

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According to FBI statistics, Texas had 438 violent crimes and 2,562 property crimes per 100,000 residents as of this year. For every 100,000 residents, there are 224 police officers statewide.

Crime rates are expressed as the number of incidents per 100,000 people.

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