EXCLUSIVE: Angry supporters of industrial arts teacher reveal what ‘REALLY happened’ before alleged classroom fight, and that he has suffered ‘years of abuse’… as he is arrested and charged
- A petition has been launched for teacher Michael Kable.
- He was accused of allegedly assaulting a student
A high school industrial arts teacher who has been accused of a fight with a student in a classroom has faced “countless amounts of verbal and physical abuse” throughout his career, supporters say.
Michael Kable, 62, was arrested Tuesday night following reports that a pupil at Maitland Grossman Secondary School, in the Hunter region of NSW, had allegedly been assaulted in class at around 2pm.
Video of the classroom fight quickly surfaced where Mr. Kable appears to throw balls of paper at the student, say “come on buddy” and grab his neck.
The teacher then allegedly dumped the student on his desk before classmates intervened, leading to an angry exchange, multiple students yelling at Mr. Kable, and one throwing a desk at him.
Mr. Kable was charged with common battery and received a warrant for his arrest for violence, which is believed to have been made for the protection of the student involved.
He was granted conditional bond and will face court next month.
An online Change.org petition has since been launched calling for “justice” for Mr. Kable, claiming that the footage does not show the full “context” of what happened to him in the classroom.
A petition has been launched to support a teacher who has been charged after allegedly assaulting a student
Police were called to Maitland Grossmann Secondary School, north-west of Newcastle, around 2pm on Tuesday with the entire incident captured on video.
“Throughout his career, Mr. Kable has suffered numerous, countless amounts of verbal and physical abuse from students,” states one anonymous follower.
“But due to the weak and inconsistent school punishment system, they only get a ‘slap on the wrist’ as punishment.”
The organizer claimed that students trigger such incidents with the aim of getting time off from school by being suspended.
They also alleged that a table had been thrown at Mr. Kable and that he was being verbally abused and shoved and shoved prior to the alleged attack.
“Mr. Kable does NOT deserve to lose his job, his family, his reputation, and most importantly, his life,” the page continues.
“All support is appreciated in helping Mr. Kable through such (setbacks).”
The petition has drawn nearly 300 signatures since it was created Tuesday night, about 60 percent of its goal of 500.
Community members have given their support to the teacher.
The teacher can be seen throwing balls of paper at a student from a close distance before saying ‘come on buddy’ and grabbing his neck.
Daily Mail Australia has sought comment from Maitland Grossmann High School. The Department of Education is investigating.
Opposition leader Chris Minns was asked about the incident after video posted on social media showed the classroom fight.
“I don’t know the circumstances,” Minns told Nine’s Today on Wednesday.
‘Teachers have never been under so much pressure.
Discipline at school is important. Part of that is ensuring that when teachers make a call to principals, they are backed up.
‘If there are examples of that in NSW education, we have to make sure teachers are supported.’
The teacher was given a conditional bond to appear in Maitland Local Court on April 6.
Mr. Kable will face court later this month.
