A teacher with a prior record of assault has been arrested after an altercation that began when he allegedly removed a Halifax-area youth’s earbuds.
A video has been circulating of part of the Oct. 3 incident at Cole Harbour District High, which saw the teacher placed on leave within hours.
RCMP Cpl. Jennifer Clarke says the incident the man allegedly removed earbuds worn by a 15-year-old boy and things quickly escalated.
“The youth then removed the man’s lanyard that was attached to keys in his pants pocket. The man then pushed the youth into a wall, and put him on the floor,” she said.
A 42-year-old Dartmouth man has been arrested for assault and mischief. Clarke says the mischief arrest stems from alleged damage to the earbuds.
“The earbuds were damaged when they were ripped out of the individual’s ears,” she said.
The boy reported the incident to school administration and was checked by emergency health services, but was not injured.
Clarke said the man has been placed on leave “to ensure he did not have any access to the victim at the school … to give the victim some protection.”
A spokesman for the Halifax Regional Centre for Education said the teacher had been placed on administrative leave, “and has voluntarily surrendered” his teaching licence.
