A New Jersey teacher used her body as a human shield to protect a student who was being savagely beaten by a group of teenagers.
Cathy Hurley, 56, didn’t think twice when she saw the young man being beaten by a group of five bullies outside a Bayonne school earlier this week.
The special education teacher was unharmed, unlike the teenager who was left unconscious during the violence.
Educarray McGhie, 18, and four minors aged between 15 and 17 have been charged with aggravated assault after the boy required hospital treatment.
“I was really shocked by how vicious the attack was,” said Hurley’s daughter, Frankie Sielski. NBC.
A New Jersey teacher used her body as a human shield to protect a student who was being savagely beaten by a group of teenagers
Cathy Hurley was credited with saving the teen’s life after she risked her own safety to help him.
She lay on top of the boy while he was attacked by five other young men whom police charged with aggravated assault.
‘I called her on Facetime immediately. Her eyes filled with tears. I said, ‘Are you okay?’ He said something very bad happened.
The shocking video shows the youths kicking and stomping on the teenager who lies helpless on the ground.
Hurley is seen falling to the ground and using his body to cover it until the blows subside.
“Thank God she got on top of him because there was no end in sight,” Sielski added.
“I know his thought process was just to get it to stop, and he kept saying ‘We’re calling the police, we’re calling the police,’ and the kids wouldn’t stop.”
‘She just needed them to stop and that’s what her body did. There was no thought behind it.’
The attack occurred next to William Shemin Midtown Community School, although the alleged perpetrators attend nearby Bayonne High School.
In a letter to school staff obtained by the Jersey MailThe Shemin school administration praised Hurley’s “bravery.”
“She was the only adult who entered the situation, trying to get the attacker away from the victim and ultimately lay on top of the student, using his body as a shield,” the letter said.
Hurley’s daughter, Frankie Sielski, said she watched the horrifying video several times before realizing it was her mother protecting the boy.
The attack took place earlier this week outside William Shemin Midtown Community School.
Hurley praised as “fearless” in letter from Wiliam Shemin school administration
“Her dedication to our students, her maternal instincts and her courage in Hudson County rank a close second to her kind and compassionate heart.”
Bayonne School District Superintendent John Niesz added that Hurley embodies what Bayonne citizens are all about.