Shocking footage captured the moment a high school teacher strangled a student as children begged him to stop.
Teacher Bennie Leverett was arrested on child abuse charges in connection with the classroom fight, which was filmed by another student on Jan. 18 at Progress Village Middle School in Florida.
It’s unclear what sparked the confrontation, as it begins with Leverett allegedly grabbing the student and holding him in a headlock as the teen tried to break free.
Following the shocking video’s discovery, the school’s vice principal, Tashiska Fabian, was also arrested after she allegedly ordered the student to delete the video and failed to report the incident to police.
Shocking footage captured the moment a high school teacher strangled a student as children begged him to stop.
The footage was reportedly filmed on January 18 at Progress Village High School in Florida, leading to the arrest of teacher Bennie Leverett on child abuse charges.
In the footage, released by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, other students in the classroom can be heard laughing hysterically as the fight began.
As the teacher and student continued to struggle, the severity seemed to take its toll on the other students in the room, with one of them approaching the teacher as the girl filming yelled, “Dude, help your son.”
The two fell to the ground at one point as the student struggled to free himself from the chokehold.
While still on the ground, the teacher claimed the student “didn’t respond to me,” prompting the other students to yell at the teacher that he “can’t” while wearing gloved heads.
“He can’t, he’s dying, they’re killing him,” added the girl who was filming.
At one point, another student (left) approached the two as they struggled, while the person filming shouted “he’s dying, they’re killing him.”
After struggling on the ground for several seconds, the young student successfully fought back and got up long enough to push the teacher, allegedly Leverett, back.
As other students swore and screamed as they witnessed the fight, the two threw themselves against a door; the footage then shows the teacher still holding the student in a headlock as they crawled into another room.
A police report stated that the student involved was 14 years old.
Major police departments across the United States have banned chokeholds since the 2014 death of Eric Garner, a New York City man who police were trying to arrest for selling loose cigarettes, and that effort intensified after the police killing of George Floyd in Minnesota in 2020.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office launched an investigation after the school video surfaced in February and found that Leverett’s chokehold “restricted the student’s ability to breathe,” according to reports. WTSP.
Hillsborough County school officials said Leavitt was “removed from his duties” when allegations were made against him in February, before being arrested and charged with child abuse the following month.
Officers also said Assistant Principal Fabian failed to report the incident when she met with the teacher and student immediately after their classroom confrontation.
Assistant Principal Tashiska Fabian (seen in her mugshot) was arrested after she allegedly ordered the student to delete the video and failed to report the incident to police.
Leverett now faces a felony child abuse charge and posted $5,000 bail to be released in March after pleading not guilty.
She also reportedly warned the student who filmed the incident to delete the video and was removed from her duties at the same time as Leverett. Officers subsequently arrested the assistant principal on Sept. 4.
Following Fabian’s arrest, Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister criticized the two school employees, calling Leverett’s behavior “deeply disturbing” and criticizing Fabian for “not doing the right thing.”
“This is a complete betrayal of trust within our community,” Chronister said.
“I am proud of the witness who stepped forward and did the right thing by reporting the incident, ensuring that the police were able to intervene and provide justice for the victim.”
Leverett now faces one count of felony child abuse and the The Tampa Bay Times He said he posted $5,000 bail and will be released in March. He pleaded not guilty.
Fabian faces a charge of failing to report child abuse and was released Wednesday after posting $2,500 bail.