High school freshman slams teacher to ground after teacher took his phone

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A Paterson, NJ freshman has been suspended from school and criminally charged with assaulting his teacher during an effort to get his cell phone back.

According to NorthJersey.com, the assault at John F. Kennedy High School was captured on cell phone video during class on Tuesday. One of the students in the room recorded as the student wrestled with the 62-year-old teacher and slammed him into the floor.

The student then grabbed something from the teacher before someone shouted, “Security!”

The school allows the use of phones for educational purposes but gives teachers leeway to confiscate phones until the end of the class period if the phones are used improperly.

“It’s troubling that in our society today students think that inside a school they can put their hands on each other and teachers as well,” Jonathan Hodges, a veteran school board member told NorthJersey.com. “I went online trying to find this video and I found numerous videos of teachers being attacked by their students.”

While JFK had previously been described as “chaotic,” city officials are working hard to clean up the school.

“This district has worked extremely hard to provide a safe and caring environment for our students and our staff, and we have succeeded in this area,” Terry Corallo, district spokeswoman, said in a written statement. “The superintendent feels very confident in Mr. Cozart’s leadership and knows that Mr. Cozart will continue to work aggressively to ensure that the JFK building is a safe place for teachers to teach and for students to learn.”